: •YAILE-'VMVlEISSII'inf' ¦LinaByMgy Gift of Frederick W. Eilles 19*5 < /•? 0 /J L ' A '/A'tJSAAi/AAAa< /l/ft/A/ru/) 7/ " 7 //< 3f/u/rce. But if it were possible that those critics could ever be made sensible of his great and peculiar merits as a painter, they would surely find themselves obliged to grant him the minor ability of being able to have composed his Own discourses. If it were necessary to add any thing else to prove that he arrogated not to himself any literary eminence from the title given to that club of which he was one ofthe founders, it might be re marked that at that period he had only written his three papers in Johnson's Idler, wherefore all bis possible plaims to a literary character were very small, and but little known. So far, indeed, was Mr. Reynolds from assu ming the character of being a man of literature, or a wit, that I remember on his reading in a morn ing paper an account of a dinner given by one of his friends to a party of wits, as it was expressed, all of whose names were mentioned, and his own amongst the rest, he exclaimed, " Why have they named me amongst them as a wit ? I never was a wit in my life !" Reynolds as a public character, had, of course, fiequent invitations, and was not an infrequent visitor at public entertainments. 124 LIFE OF . [.ETAT. 40. I have heard him relate an anecdote of a venison feast, at which were assembled many who much enjoyed the repast. On this occasion, Reynolds addressed his con versation to one of the company who sat next to him, but to his great surprise could not get a sin gle word in answer, until at length his silent neighbour, turning to him, said, " Mr. Eeynolds, whenever you are at a venison feast, I advise you not to speak during dinner time, as in endeavour ing to answer your questions, I have just swal lowed a fine piece of the fat, entire, without tasting its flavour !" The epicures of convivial society, or the pe dants ofthe literary, were to him equally subjects of his contemplation, but as in his literary inter course he often met with men of first rate genius, he naturally was solicitous of their intimacy and friendship. Whilst writing the life of the founder ofthe li terary club, it will not be considered as out of place briefly to notice the original design which, as first declared at its institution, in February, 1764, was to confine the club to twelve members, consisting of Sir Joshua, then only Mr. Reynolds, Dr. Johnson, Drs. Goldsmith, Nugent, and Percy, afterwards Bishop of Dromore, Sir Robert Cham bers and Sir John Hawkins, with Messrs. Burke, Langton, Chamier, Dyer, and the Honourable Topham Beauclerk. 1764.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 125 These vere friends so judiciously selected, as Mr. Maloie observes, and were men of such ta lents and o well known to each other, that any two of them, if they should not happen to be joined by any nore, might be good company for each other. Sich was the beginning of a society which has now existed for half a century, boasting of having h_d enrolled, on its list of members, many of the most celebrated characters of the last century. Sir John Hawkins though he does not expressly mentior Mr. Reynolds as the founder, has, not- withstaading, entered more into detail on this subject than either Mr. Boswell or Mr. Malone'; he observes, speaking of Dr. Johnson in the pre ceding year, (1763,) that he had now considerably extended the circle of his acquaintance, and .had added to the number of his friends sundry persons of distinguished eminence ; amongst whom he enumerates Reynolds and some others of the ori ginal members, and he then enters more minutely into those principles which must have weighed much with the founder, when he first thought of the plan : for he adds, that from Johnson's delight in convivial meetings, his love of conversation, and his sensible feeling of the attractions of a ta vern, it was but natural that he should wish for frequent opportunities of indulging thera in a way that would free him from domestic restraint, from the observance of hours, and from a conformity to family regulations. " A tavern was the place for 126 LIFE OF [fTAT. 40. these enjoyments, and a weekly club wasnstituted for his gratification, and the mutual jntertain- ment and delight of its several memoes. The first movers in this association were Joqison and Reynolds ; the place of meeting was thi Turk's Head in Gerard-street ; the day, Mondaji in every week ; and the hour of assembling sevei, in the evening. Our evening toast," continues Sir John, " was Esto perpetua. A lady, distinguished by her beauty and taste for literature, (Mrs. Monta gue,) invited us two successive years to i dinner at her house ; curiosity was her motive, jtad pos sibly a desire of intermingling with our conversa tion the charm of her own. She affected to consi der us as a set of literary men, and perhaps gave the first occasion for distinguishing the society by the name of the Literary Club, a distinction which it never assumed to itself." Mr. Boswell record's an opinion of Sir Joshua's on the subject of conversation, which may be no ticed in this place. When it had been proposed to add some members to the Literary Club, Gold smith had said in favour of it, that it would give the club an agreeable variety, that there could now be nothing new among the members, and that they had travelled over each other's minds; to which Johnson answered, " Sir, you have not travelled over my mind I promise you !" When Reynolds was afterwards told of this, he agreed with Gold smith, saying that " when people have lived a 1764.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 127 great deal together, they know what each of them will say on the subject. A new understanding, therefore, is desirable ; because, though it may only furnish the same sense upon a question which would have been furnished by those with whom we are accustomed to live, yet this sense will have a different colouring ; and colouring is of much effect in every thing else as well as in painting." I have not specifically noticed the admirable whole length picture which Reynolds painted of the late Mrs. Abington in the character ofthe Comic Muse, and which is now in the possession of the Dorset family ;* but I may here observe, that Mrs. Abington was not only by far the most eminent performer in comedy of her day, and therefore most proper to be the representative of Thalia, but has perhaps never been surpassed in any time. She was also esteemed at that period as a person of most exquisite taste, and, like a woman of superior abilities, had ever a great am bition to be noticed by men eminent for their ge nius ; therefore on her benefit nights she always endeavoured to collect as many distinguished per sons, particularly of this Literary Club, as was in her power, in order to add dignity to her audience, taking care to place them in the most conspicu ous situation in the house. * Placed in the gallery at Knole Park, which contains a curi ous collection of portraits of eminent persons of all descriptions. 128 LIFF OF [.ETAT. 40. Accordingly Mr. Reynolds, Dr. Johnson, Dr. Goldsmith, Edmund Burke, and many others of like eminence, rarely failed attending her perform ances on such evenings, in which her favourite character was that of Estifania, in " Rule a Wife and Have a Wife." She, however, much offended Goldsmith, at last, by refusing to take the part which he had written on purpose for her, in his Comedy of " She stoops to Conquer," which character was, of necessity, performed by another actress, to Goldsmith's great mortification, on the first night's representation. Having thus slightly noticed matters that may be considered as events not wholly unimportant in the life of Reynolds, I may further add of this year, as connected with the arts, that in the month of April was opened the exhibition of Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture, at the Great Room in Spring Gardens, as it had been in the two preced ing years, but now with an addition of many of those exhibitors, who, until this period, had con tinued annually to exhibit at the original place, tbe great room belonging to the Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures, and Com merce, then situated nearly opposite to Beaufort Buildings in the Strand. But that society finding that the artists who had intended to continue with them began to diminish in numbers, and also that their exhibition interfered with the other con- 1764.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 129 cerns ofthe society, they no longer indulged them with the use of their room, and consequently the exhibitions at that place terminated in that year. This extended and ample exhibition at Spring Gardens had, however, originated from the union of all the artists in the metropolis, as before no ticed, in the year 1760; and the success of their exhibitions having given them sufficient encou ragement, they now also seriously proposed to in corporate themselves, and accordingly drew up a plan of a charter, at that time, which was granted to them in the following year. It may not be foreign to my purpose, for the in formation of general readers, to take some notice of the royal charter of incorporation of this esta blishment, particularly as it has been entirely passed over by former biographers. This charter then was given to the " Society of Artists of Great Britain," to consist of a president, vice-president, directors, and fellows, to be for ever after a body corporate, with perpetual succession, and with power to enjoy lands in perpetuity, either by purchase or devise, to the yearly value of ,£1000, notwithstanding the statute of mortmain. Their arms, or corporation seal, consisted of azure, a brush, a chissel, and a pair of compasses, com posed fretty, or; over these, in chief, a regal crown proper. This coat had two supporters: on the dexter side, Britannia ; on the sinister. Concord. The crest was on a wreath, an oak branch, and a VOL. I. K. 130 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 40. palm branch in saltire, and in the centre of these, a chaplet of laurel. This common seal too, a thing very unusual in heraldic grants, they had liberty to break, alter, or change the same, from time to time, as they thought fit. It was further stipulated, that all the officers, together with the directors, should be either pain ter's, sculptors, architects, or engravers, by profes sion. The charter further authorized them to hold meetings for the better improvement of those arts, in London, or within ten miles thereof, as often as it might be necessary. Mr. Lambert was the first president, and Mr. Hayrhan his vice ; Messrs. Dalton and Newton Wfere the first treasurer and secretary ; the other members ofthe direction were Sir William Cham bers, Messrs. Mac Ardell, Barret, Collins, Cotes, Grigttion, Gwyn, Hone, Meyer, Moser, Paynfe, Penny, Rooker, Sandby, Seaton, Tyler, Wall, Wilson, Wilton, and Yeo. As the events which gave rise to this establish ment are intimately connected with the preseirt Royal Academy, in its progress and foundation, I cannot give a better view of them, in part, than is afforded by the slight sketch drawn up in the year 1766, by Mr. John Gwyn, an ingenious architec tural writer, in his " London and Westminster Improved." He observes, that Sir Peter Lely and Sir God- 1764.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 131 frey Kneller kept up the national passion with great success ; and some public works, which re quired decorations, gave opportunity to Sir James Thornhill and others, to shew, that historical painting, if properly encouraged, was a field in which the British nation might engage with their competitors, not without advantage : but notwith standing this advancement of the art of painting, and the number of ingenious professors who con tinually advanced in every branch, neither paint ing, nor professors of painting, were known, dis tinguished, or encouraged. The few, indeed, who had taste and discernment, sought for these inge nious men, and purchased their works ; but the public knew them not, nor did they know each other : they had no society or intercourse with their fellow artists, consequently had very little to say in each other's recommendation, in the diffe* rent branches of painting ; and he who had the greatest acquaintance, whatever were his abilities, was sure to get the most money. However, the natural good sense and ingenuity of the iBritisb nation continued still to furnish very able masters ; and these, at Jength, collected their scattered and dispersed brethren, and formed a little society, wlio, wisely considering their mutual interest, by a voluntary subscription among themselves, esta blished an academy in St. Martin's-lane. The establishment of the Foundling Hospital, which was a national concern, and attracted the K 2 132 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 40. notice of the public in a very particular manner, gave an opportunity, when finished, for displaying a scene entirely new to this nation. The Hospital was just in its infancy, and elegant decorations, and every possible means that could allure or draw the attention of the public towards its support and maintenance, were found necessary ; but the ex pense of such ornaments could not be afforded by a charity whose utmost abilities were demanded for the succour and support of deserted perishing infants. In order to contribute to the support of this useful establishment, and to shew at once that ingenuity and compassion for the distresses of hu man nature are usually found to reside in the same person, the most considerable artists in Great Bri tain nobly and generously united in bestowing a great number of excellent performances, in paint ing and sculpture, which embellished the Hospital, entertained the public, and, at the same time con vinced the world that painting was arrived to a degree of perfection in this kingdom, of which, until this era, they had no conception. The Go vernors ofthe Hospital, convinced of the use and benefit which accrued to the charity from these truly valuable donations, and desirous of improving a connection so very advantageous to them, en couraged the several contributors, and also the whole body of those who professed the polite arts, to have an annual meeting at the Hospital, on the fifth of November; these meetings drew together 1764.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. T33 the most ingenious artists from every quarter, and at one of them it was proposed to the whole body, to have an annual exhibition of such performances as should be judged worthy the notice of the public. A proposal so very advantagepus to merit of every kind, could not fail of being received with applause, and was unanimously agreed to. In consequence of this resolution, application was made to the Society, of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce, who, taking it into consideration, rightly judged, that an exhibition of this nature could not be carried into execution with so much propriety as under their patronage; they complied, therefore, willingly, with this request, and, in the year 1760, the first exhibition of the artists pf ! Great Britain was made, and another the year fol lowing ; but as every member of the society was at liberty to distribute what number of tickets for admittance he thought fit, that which was intended only as a polite entertainment and rational amuse ment for the public, became a scene of tumult and disorder; and to such a height was the rage of visiting the exhibition carried, that, when the members themselves had satisfied their own curi osity, the room was crowded, during the hours allotted for the exhibition, with menial servants and their acquaintance. This prostitution of the polite arts undoubtedly became extremely disa greeable to the professors themselves, who heard, 134 LIFE OF [/ETAT. 40. alike, with indignation, their works censured or approved by kitchen-maid* and stable-boys ; but , the cause of the final separation, (for this abuse might have been remedied,) of the artists of Great Britain from tbe Society, was this : it bad been, and still is, usual for the Society to give premiums for historical and landscape painting ; these reward's were usually adjudged among the competitors some little time before the exhibition began, and as those who gained the premiums were obligedto leave their pictures a limited time with the Society, they were, of course, sure to be in the exhibition. The great inconvenience of this method of proceed ing was soon discovered by several of the most eminent painters, whose reputations were already so eminently established as to prevent their be coming candidates for a trifling premium ; these, therefore, as their characters were so nearly con cerned, very justly objected to the continuation of this custom, for the following obvious reason : it was generally known that the Society had deter mined premiums for several pictures, and it was natural enough for persons who knew nothing of the matter to inquire, upon entering the room, which of the pieces, among that profusion of art, were those that had obtained the premium, and, being satisfied in this particular, they very inno cently concluded* for want of better judgement, that these had obtained the prize from all the rest, and, consequently, were the best pictures. Had 1764.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 135 it been possible to have confined this injurious de cision to the vulgar spectators, it would have been a thing of no consequence ; but, unfortunately for the arts, many in a much higher sphere of life were liable to be led away by the same opinion ; and therefore, as the society would not give up the point, a separation ensued, and every succeeding exhibition has been made at the room in Spring Gardens. The prodigious encouragement given to it, and the applause bestowed on the several performances, by persons of the greatest taste and distinction, evidently shew what a prodigious pro gress has been, made in the arts, as well as what great expectations may be formed pf what will probably be done by concurring incitements of applause and emulation, and the effects of society aqd concord. The success of the exhibition, and the harmony which subsisted among the exhibitors, naturally led them to the thoughts of soliciting an establishment, and forming themselyes into a body: in consequence of which solicitation, his Majesty was most graciously pleased to grant them his Royal Charter, incorporating them by the name of the Society of Artists of Great Britain ; which charter bears date the 26th day of January, 1765, and is the one of which I have given the preceding sketch. In the summer of this year a violent and very dangerous illness attacked Mr. Reynolds, which had nearly deprived his associates of one of 136 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 40. the best of friends, and the world of one of its brightest ornaments. His illness, however, was but of short duration, and his recovery was cheered by the following af fectionate letter from Dr. Johnson, then on a visit in Northamptonshire : " TO JOSHUA REYNOLDS, ESQ., IN LEICESTER-FIELDS, LONDON. " DEAR SIR, " I did not hear of your sickness, till I heard, likewise, of your recovery, and there fore escaped that part of your pain which every ^ man must feel to whom you are known as you are known to me. Having had no particular account of your disorder, I know not in what state it has left you. If the amusement of my company can exhilarate the languor of a slow recovery, I will not delay a day to come to you ; for I know not how I can so effectually promote my own pleasure as by pleasing you, or my own interest as by pre serving you ; in whom, if I should lose you, I should lose almost tbe only man whom I call a friend. Pray let me hear of you from yourself, or from dear Miss Reynolds. Make my compliments to Mr. Mudgej* " I am, dear Sir, " Your most affectionate, and " Most humble servant, Sam. Johnson. " At the Rev. Mr. Percy's, at Easton-Maudit, " Northamptonshire, (by Castle Ashby) August 19, 1764." * Mr. Mudge happened to be at that time in London on a visit.. 1764.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 137 In 1764. the world and the art lost Hogarth, who died on the 26th of October, at the age of sixty-seven. At the time, a silly report was propagated by a party, that his death was accelerated by that most severe and cruel poetical epistle, addressed to him by the well known Charles Churchill in conse quence of a quarrel that took place from a diffe rence of opinion in politics. In that satire, the poet supposes Hogarth to be in his dotage, and with affected pity laments his fallen state and loss of powers, and concludes with a compliment to Reynolds, saying, " The greatest genius to this fate may bow, . Reynolds, in time, may be like Hogarth now !" I may add, that this illustrious painter had a weakness, from which, indeed, even the great Shakespeare was not exempt, that of a fondness for a pun ; one specimen of which I have heard related by Reynolds. A party of painters, of whom Hogarth was one, were looking at a picture painted by Allan Ram say, but were not able to ascertain who was the artist, being all in doubt, with the exception of Hogarth, who soon set them right, by saying, " Don't you see clearly in the picture the Ram's eye ?" Another of his foibles, it is well known, was the excessive high opinion he held of his own abilities ; 138 LIFE OF [iETAX. 40. fop when he was engaged in his work of the Mar riage a la mode, he said to Reynolds, " I shall very soon be able to gratify the world with such a sight as tbey have never seen (quailed !" Hogarth has never been admitted to rank high as a painter, but certainly so as a moralist ; yet it has, of late, been discovered, that his small pic tures possess considerable dexterity of execution,: as to his large pieces, they appear to be the efforts of imbecility ; he was totally without the practice required for such works. The best lesson, indeed the only one I believe, by which we can learn to paint small pictures in a grand style, is, first to gain experience by exe cuting well in the full size of nature, or even larger; and as a proof of this assertion, it maybe remarked that there are no instances now to be found in the world of any small pictures possessing the true properties of tbe grand style, except by those painters who have been accustomed to work on a large scale : for it is only in large pictures that the indispensable necessity exists of marking out with precision and distinctness all the parts; such precision as is not to be found nor required in the smaller size, as small pictures never proceed much beyond sketches. This is the true reason why those, who are painters of small pictures only, cannot paint in a large size. Nothing in art is more distinguishable than the difference between the 6inall pictures by the pain- 1764.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 139 ters of large works, and the small pictures by those who never did any other kind, or had never prac tised in works of the full size of nature : and so convinced have I always been of this as a truth, that, from tbe mortifying reflection that small pic tures only are saleable and commodious in this country, I have often thought it advisable, in respect to worldly advantage, to execute such ; but in that case to follow this severe and laborious method ; that is, first, to finish the subject in the full size of life, and afterwards copy it in small, by which means may be obtained that style of breadth and grandeur to be found in the pictures of great masters even when painted in a small size. The original may be then destroyed, if you please, it being an unprofitable article which nobody will purchase. As an instance of the imbecility of those pain ters, when painting large pictures, who have been accustomed to paint only in a small size, there is now to be seen an attempt by Nicolo Poussin. The subject ofthe picture is the martyrdom of St, Erasmus ; and it is placed in one of 'the smaller Chapels of St. Peter's Church at Rome. The figures are the full size of life : 'but this picture is executed in so little a manner, and without those broad masses of light and shadow so absolutely necessary to give distinctness and effect to a pic ture when seen from a distance, that it appears weak and indistinct when viewed beyond tha steps 14.0 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 41. ofthe altar, and the spectator is puzzled to discover what is the subject, or even one figure from ano ther: yet the picture is not without the merit of good drawing and anatomical knowledge. But with regard to familiar scenes, Dutch drolls, and comic subjects of every kind, they ought, on no account or pretence whatsoever, to assume a size of any magnitude, as, by so doing, they give up their interesting quality of a refined toy to be come a nuisance; even in the rich luxuriance of Rubens in his Bacchanalian scenes, although exe cuted with the highest powers of mechanic art, we cannot but view the subject with some degree of displeasure, from the impropriety of the size alone in which they are represented, as such sub jects are only fitted for canvas of smaller dimen sions. 1765. .ETAT. 41. In 1765 Mr. Reynolds exhibited a whole length portrait of Lady Sarah Bunbury, in which she is represented as sacrificing to the Graces. Previous to this he had painted an excellent whole length portrait of Lady Elizabeth Keppel, in the dress she wore as bridemaid to the Queen ;* and in the same exhibition he had another portrait of Lady * Exhibited in the year 1762, at the Great Room, Spring Gardens. 1765.} SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 141 Waldegrave ; of which Mr. Barry, in a letter to Dr. Sleigh, says — " We have had two exhibitions since I wrote to you : the pictures that struck me most were Lady Sarah Bunbury sacrificing to the Graces, and Lady Waldegrave. They are some of Mr. Reynold's best works, which is the greatest' character they ean have." Barry gives testimony in favour of Reynolds's merits, in another letter to Dr. Sleigh, written in the same year, which was soon after his arrival in London, for the first time, from his native king dom, Ireland, wherein he says, " To avoid too great a trespass on your patience, I proposed breaking off with taking notice of the great ad vance of portrait painting since it got into the hands of Mr. Reynolds ; but as you have seen his pictures when you were in England, no one is more capable of discerning the greatness and deli cacy of his style, the propriety of his characters, his great force of light and shadow, and taste of colouring." Very soon after the above was written, Barry was enabled, by the munificence of the Burkes, to set out on his tour of France and Italy: and on another occasion, still in the same year, he wrote from Paris to Mr. Burke ; when, whilst speaking of the paintings at Versailles, he said, " What I fiave seen since, gives me more and more reason to admire Mr. Reynolds : you know my senti ments of him already, and the more I know 142 LIFE OF [/ETAT. 41. and see of the art, the less likely they are to change." As it may afford some idea of the degree in which the arts were, at this period, held by the public in England, I shall here give the following anecdote, in regard to historical painting. It was not long after the arrival of Mr. West in this country, from his studies in Italy, that he displayed his powers in historical painting in a most excellent picture ; the subject of which was that of Pylades and Orestes, one of his very best works. As any attempt in history was, at that period, an almost unexampled effort, this picture became a matter of mUch surprise. His house was soon filled with visitors from all quarters to see it ; and those amongst the highest rank, who were not able to come to his house to satisfy their curiosity, desired his permission to have it sent to them; nor did they fail, every time it was returned to him, to accompany it with compliments of the highestcommendation on its great merits. But the most wonderful part of the story is, that, not withstanding all this vast bustle and commenda tion, bestowed upon this justly admired picture, by which Mr. West's servant gained upwards of thirty pounds for showing it, yet no one mortal ever asked the price of the work, or so much as offered to give him a commission to paint any other subject. Indeed there was one gentleman so 1765.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 143 highly delighted with the picture, and who spoke of it with sueh great praise to hi's father, that he immediately asked him the reason he did not pur chase, as he so much admired it, when he an swered — " What could I do, if I had it?— you would not surely have me hang up a modern Eng lish picture in my house, unless it was a portrait?" It was in this year that Johnson's edition of Shakspeare made its appearance ; and even for this the world is much obliged to Reynolds. Mr. Boswell tells us, that in 1756 the Doctor had re sumed his scheme of giving that work with notes, and had even published proposals, in which he promised that it should be perfected by Christ mas 1757, but that his habitual indolence had pre vented him from pursuing the system of research necessary for such an undertaking. Sir John Hawkins also notices particularly that a reverend divine (Churchill) had exhibited him to ridicule in a satirical poem, and revived the remembrance Of that engagement to the public, "which by this and other instances of the laxity of his mind, he seemed not" inclined to fulfil." This was about 1760 ; but, as Hawkins adds, although Johnson was insensible to the abuse, yet his friends took the alarm, and by all the arts of persuasion and reasoning, endeavoured to con vince him that his credit was at stake, in having yet made no progress in a work, for which he had already taken subscriptions. 144 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 41. The true reason to be given for the delay of this work is, that Johnson had undertaken it at a pe riod when he was obliged, to be a literary drudge for his livelihood, and merely on account of the profits it would afford him : — but it never was an object of his desire. In the mean time, he be came possessed of the pension of three hundred per annum from the bounty of his present Majesty, and therefore, that task, which before was under taken from necessity only, now became loathsome to him, and he could not summon up sufficient resolution to go on with the work, although he had engaged himself to the public by having re ceived subscriptions for it. He indeed confessed that he was culpable, and made promises, from time to time, that he would commence the neces sary course of reading : but even now his best friends trembled for his fulfilment of these pro mises; nor was it until Reynolds, and some others of his friends, contrived to entangle him in a wager for its performance at a given period, that he could be prevailed to sit down to it in earnest. These friendly exertions, however, had the best effect, and at length, in 1765, the work was pro duced. I make no doubt that Reynolds, in order to en courage Johnson in the business, at the same time offered to furnish him with a few notes on the text of Shakspeare, which he faithfully performed; and as these notes serve to show the clearness of J765.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 145 perception and mode of thinking in Reynolds, it is surely requisite to insert them in this place. In Macbeth, act the first, scene the sixth, in the dialogue between the King and Banquo, is this passage — Kmg. " This castle hath a pleasant seat ; the air Nimbly and sweetly recommends itself Unto our gentle senses. Ban. This guest of summer, The temple-haunting martlet, does approve, By his lov'd mansionry, that the heav'n's breath Smells wooingly. Here is no jetty frieze, Bui 1 1 ice, nor coigne of vantage, but this bird Hath made his pendant bed and procreant cradle: Where they most breed and haunt, I have observ'd The air is delicate." On which Reynolds observes, "This short dia logue between Duncan and Banquo, whilst they are approaching the gates of Macbeth's castle, has always appeared to me a striking instance of what in painting is termed repose. This conversation very naturally turns upon the beauty of its situa tion, and the pleasantness ofthe air; and Banquo, observing the martlets' nests in every recess ofthe cornice, remarks, that where those birds most breed and haunt the air is delicate. The subject of quiet and easy conversation gives that repose so necessary to the mind after the tumultuous bustle of the preceding scenes, and perfectly con trasts the scene of horror that immediately suc ceeds. It seems as if Shakspeare asked himself, VOL. I. L 116 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 41. what is a prince likely to say to his attendants on such an occasion ? Whereas, the modern writers seem, on the contrary, to be always searching for new thoughts — such as would never occur to men in the situation which is represented. ¦— - Th.s, also, is frequently the practice of Flomer, who, from the midst of battles and horrors, relieves and refreshes the mind of the reader, by introducing some quiet rural image, or picture of familiar do mestic life." On this note, the following observation has been made in a late edition by Mr. Malone, which, al though expressing a difference of opinon, is yet highly complimentary to Reynolds. — " It is not without reluctance that I express my dissent from the friend whose name is subscribed to the preced ing note; whose observations on all subjects of cri ticism and taste are so ingenious and just, that posterity may be at a loss to determine, whether his consummate skill and execution in his own art, Or his judgement in that and other kindred arts, Were superior." In Othello, act first, scene third, the Duke says: " Let me speak like yourself; and lay a sentence, Which, as a grise or step, may help these lovers Into your favour." The Duke then proceeds to repeat a variety of proverbs in rhyming distichs ; On which Johnson says in a note, " The Duke seems to mean, when 1765.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 147 he says In honor of the King's birth-day, which was kept on Monday the 5th of June, and the first which had occurred after the institution of the Royal Academy, the body of Royal Academicians gave an entertainment at their house in Pall Mall; and, as a token of their grateful sense of his Majesty's favour to them, a splendid illumination in the evening was displayed, with transparent paintings, and lamps of various colours, occupy ing the whole front of the Royal Academy. In the centre compartment appeared a graceful female figure seated, representing Painting, surrounded with Genii, §ome of which guided her pencil, whilst others dictated subjects to her : at her feet were various youths employed in the study ofthe art ; and over her head hovered a celestial form, representing Royal Munificence, attended by se veral other figures supporting a cornucopia filled with honors and rewards. This whole piece was executed by Mr. Cipriani, R. A. On the left side of Painting, in another com partment, Sculpture was represented by a female figure, standing upon a rock of marble, holding * She was the daughter of Valentine Morris, esq., the original possessor and improver of the romantic and much admired do main of Piercefield, in Monmouthshire; in the adornment of which he had expended much money, and deranged his private fortune. Miss Morris made her first appearance at Covent Gar den theatre on November 29, 1768 ; and died May 1, 1769. 1769-] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 187 in one hand an antique bust, and in the other the chisel and mallet. Thiscompartment was executed by Mr. West, R. A. On the right side of Painting, in a third com partment, was represented, by another female fi gure, Architecture, in a contemplative attitude, holding in her hand a pair of compasses, being surrounded with buildings, and having at her feet the basket and acanthus root, which are said to have given rise to the Corinthian order. This subject was executed by Mr. Nathaniel Dance, R. A. Immediately above the centre compartment was a tablet with this inscription, " Royal Academy of Arts, instituted MDCCLXVIII." And upon the tablet was placed a medallion, in which were represented the portraits of their Majesties, by Mr. Penny, R. A. The medallion was surrounded with festoons of laurel, roses, and myrtle inter twined, and with trophies of arms, and attributes of Venus and the Graces, painted by Mr. Richards, R. A. Some parts of the front were adorned with tro phies alluding to the different arts of design, painted by Mr. Richards and Mr. Wale, R. A. And others were enriched with stars and various figures in lamps of different colours; the top of the building was terminated with a large Imperial Crown and various pyramids, &c. in lamps of dif ferent colours. 188 LIFF OF [.ETAT. 45. It should be noticed, that exhibitions of trans parencies were at the time quite a novelty, so much so indeed, that nothing of the kind had hitherto been seen ; in addition to which, this was the joint work of the first painters in the king dom, and therefore was viewed by the populace with astonishment and delight : since then, how ever, from the vast increase of artists in the nation, transparencies are become so common, that they are little thought of, and commonly very indif ferently executed. In this year Sir Joshua Reynolds wrote a most excellent letter to Barry, then a student at Rome. It is so descriptive of the writer's principles, and so honourable to his feelings as an artist, that I shall insert it here at length, only premising, that it was partly addressed to Barry in consequence of a letter from him to Mr. Burke, in which he de scribed himself as engaged in some contests with the picture dealers at Rome, who were acting very illiberally towards young English artists, and using underhand means to prevent their being employed by various travellers in copying or making origi nals, as those dealers in rotten pictures earnestly desired to possess themselves of all the loose cash which affluent tourists had purposed to lay out in Vertu. 1769.] sir joshua reynolds. 189 " Dear Sir, " I am very much obliged to you for your remembrance of me in your letter to Mr. Burke, which, though I have read with great pleasure as a composition, I cannot help saying with some regret, to find that so great a portion of your attention has been engaged upon temporary matters, which might be so much more profitably employed upon what would stick by you through your whole life. " Whoever is resolved to excel in painting, or indeed in any other art, must bring all his mind to bear upon tbat one object, from the moment he rises till he goes to bed ; the effect of every object that meets the painter's eye may give him a lesson, provided his mind is calm, unembarrassed with other objects, and open to instruction. This ge neral attention, with other studies connected with the art, which must employ the artist in his closet, will be found sufficient to fill up life, if it was much longer than it is. Were I in your place, I would consider myself as playing a great game, and never suffer the little malice and envy of my rivals to draw off my attention from the main object ; which, if you pursue with a steady eye, it will not be in the power of all the Cicerones in the world to hurt you. Whilst they are endeavouring to prevent the gentlemen from employing the young artists, instead of injuring them, they are, in my opinion, doing them the greatest service. 190 UFE OF [.ETAT. 45. " Whilst I was at Rome I was very little em ployed by them, and that I always considered as so much time lost : copying those ornamental pic tures, which the travelling gentlemen always bring home with them as furniture for their houses, is far from being the most profitable manner of a stu dent spending his time. Whoever has great views, I would recommend to him, whilst at Rome, ra ther to live on bread and water, than lose those advantages which he can never hope to enjoy a second time, and which he will find only in the Vatican ; where, I will engage, no cavalier sends his students to copy for him. I do not mean this as any reproach to the gentlemen ; the works in that place, though they are the proper study of an artist, make but an awkward figure painted in oil, and reduced to the size of easel pictures. The Capella Sistina is the production of the greatest genius that was ever employed in the arts ; it is worth considering by what principles that stupen dous greatness of style is produced; and endea vouring to produce something of your own on those principles, will be a more advantageous method of study, than copying the St. Cecilia in the Bor ghese, or the Herodias of Guido, which may be copied to eternity, without contributing one jot towards making a man a more able painter. *' If you neglect visiting the Vatican often, and particularly the Capella Sistina, you will neglect receiving that peculiar advantage which Rome can 1769.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 191 give above all other cities in the world. In other places you will find casts from the antique, and capital pictures ofthe great painters, but it is there only that you can form an idea of the dignity of the art, as it is there only that you can seethe Works of Michael Angelo and Raffaelle. If you should not relish them at first, which may pro bably be the case, as they have none of those qua lities which are captivating at first sight, never cease looking till you feel something like inspira tion come Over you, till you think every other painter insipid, in comparison, and to be admired only for petty excellencies. " I suppose you have heard of the establish ment of a Royal Academy here ; the first oppor tunity I have I will send you the discourse I de livered at its opening, which was the first of Ja nuary. As I hope you will be hereafter one of our body, I wish you would, as opportunity offers, make memorandums of the regulations of the aca demies that you may visit in your travels, to be engrafted on our own, if they should be found useful. " I am, with tbe greatest esteem, " Yours, " J. Reynolds. " On reading my letter over, I think it requires some apology for the blunt appearance of a dicta torial style, in which I have obtruded my advice; "il am forced to write in a great hurry, and have little time for polishing my style." 192 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 45. Barry writes thus to the Burkes, dated from Rome, July the 8th 1769. " I wrote an answer some time ago, to a most obliging friendly letter which I received from Sir Joshua Reynolds. I am really happy at this other mark of distinction which is bestowed upon his unquestionably superior talents. Nobody rejoices more than I do, to find the world inclined to make those acknowledgments to abilities and virtue." Barry, also, in his letter to Sir Joshua above- mentioned, dated from Rome, May 17th, 1769, thus expresses himself. From Mr. Barry to Mr. Reynolds. Rome, May \7th, 1769. " Dear Sir, " Nothing could have made me more really happy than the very kind letter you favoured me with lately. It came most op portunely to support my spirits at a time when I was in the hands of a doctor and a surgeon, and ill of a fever, which, I believe, was occasioned by a cold I got while working in the Vatican ; but, thank God, I am tolerably well got over it, and though it kept me from work some weeks, yet, as I am got backagain to the Vatican, and (what with 'bleeding and other evacuations in my illness) with a better frame of body, there is no reason to be 1769'] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 193 dissatisfied. Whenever the Pope is made, which I hope will be soon, I shall go to the Capella Sistina. " There is a passage in your letter, which will be a sufficient excuse for what I am going to tell you, that I think myself rather reprehensible as a furious enthusiast for Michael Angelo, than as re garding him with any degree of coldness or indif ference. I saw in his works only that deep know ledge of the human body, aud that masterly style of drawing each part in particular, so noble in its form, and so adjusted to, and corresponding with the other parts, that for a naked figure, taken sim ply as such, there is nothing in painting to parallel him. It is only in the antique, where one sees the same knowledge and amazing fitness, in the detail of all the component parts of a figure ; and if this is not tbe summum bonum of art, it is at least, very near it ; so that if, in any of my letters to my friends, I have been a little warm in express ing my feelings of the superiority of the antique to all things whatsoever, in fitness of parts, ele gance and propriety of thinking, and, indeed, every thing that could be shewn in a statue ; or if I have said that Raffaelle excelled in possessing the ge neral parts ofthe art, and was nearest the antique in these things, and that Titian alone was the pain ter of painters, yet I never forgot that there were no examples of the naked to be found, except in Mi chael Angelo, that prodigy, in whose works may be seen the difference at least of two centuries be- vol. i. o 194 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 45. twixt them, and what was done by people immedi ately before him : one sees Raffaelle and all his contemporaries, as studiously concealing the naked, (no one chusing to contend it with Michael An gelo in that part) as the other was of shewing it. I know but of two or three examples of naked fi gures in Raffaelle, in the Galatea, Diogenes, and Christ in the dispute of the Sacrament, and the School of Athens, and his St. John. The two former are, you know, not to be mentioned with Michael Angelo : the St. John I will not speak of, as the original is, they say, in France: a compa rison betwixt Raffaelle's Jonas, and Michael An- gelo's Christ, would turn much in favor of Mi chael Angelo, though perhaps Raffaelle may have the advantage in the elegance of his idea and ge neral form. You will excuse my mentioning these things to you, who are so much better ac quainted with them already ; but I wished to ex culpate myself to you, and I will further add, that it was next to impossible that I should think lightly of Michael Angelo, as it is some years since I read a paper in the Idler, which has been pointed out to me as your's. I have a notion some how or other, that the arts would be just now of some consequence, and pretty much a public concern, did not the state competitors, of whom the papers are so full, divert the attention of the public into another channel. However, I can say with truth, that as nobody is more an enthusiast for art than 1769-] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 195 I am, so there is no one who rejoices more sin cerely at the honor done art, by the title and dig nity his majesty has graciously conferred on that person, whose plan of a public exhibition bas been as serviceable to art as his performances were. The public opinion will supply what I would say. " I am sincerely and heartily obliged to you, for your kind advice with respect to study ; it has given me great consolation to find, that my whole course of study, for near three years I have been in Italy, has been so agreeable to the plan you men tion. I had the mortification here to see that I was taking quite a different route from most other people in study, as I never so much as employed myselffor two hours, upon any thing besides Mi chael Angelo, Raffaelle, and Titian, except my studies upon the antique and nature, my own little things of invention, and a piece of a figure of a Magdalen, by Annibal Carrachi. As I was conscious that my notions of colouring were bad and ill grounded, copying of Titian for some time, was, I thought, the only advisable course I could take, and I have reason to think I did not judge ill: the way of colouring I had then, was enough to damn even a good design and drawing, more espe cially amongst such people as ours, who are float ing about after Magilphs and mysteries, and very little likely to satisfy themselves with that say ing of Annibal's ' Buon disegno e colorito di fango.' o 2 196 LIFE OF [/ETAT. 45. " It is impossible for me to describe to you, what an advantage I had in the acquaintance of Mr. Burke ; it was a preparative for, and facili tated my relish for the beautiful things ofthe arts here; and I will affirm from experience, that one gentleman of a literary turn, and delicate feeling for the ideal, poetical and expressive parts ofthe art, is likely to be of the greatest service to a young artist, and will be found the true corrective for those mechanical and practical perfections, which the general herd of painters make such a stir about in their conversations, of which -this country furnishes the strongest instance in the world, as a long succession of painters here* have so corrupted one another, that there is hardly to be found one ideal beauty in any Italian painter ofthe day. I. should have the greatest obligation to you imaginable, if you would favour me with your discourse at the opening of the Academy, which you were so obliging as to promise in your letter. I long to read it in our coffee-house ; as I could wish, by way of revenge upon the enemies of art, to inspire all sorts of artists with that enthusiasm for their profession, which will give vigour to the prosecution of study, and which, (from what I have seen in the Idler) I am sure your discourses must abound with. " I am, dear Sir, " With the greatest respect and love, " Your most obliged, ' " And very humble Servant, " J. B. 1769.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 197 " I shall be very particular and careful in making such collections of the institutions of the several academies as I can. " I am tempted to say, by way of apology, for that part of my attention, which, as you observe, was employed upon my disputes with some peo ple here, that though I have found it impossible for me not to be uneasy at it, as I saw what ad vantages it deprived me of (not copying as you suppose) I saw also an artist for whose person and abilities I had the greatest value, helped out of the world, rather, I am afraid, before his time, and the same thing had happened here before to one Crawley a sculptor. It is impossible I say, for me not to have been moved at it, and if love of art, friendship for an ingenious man, who was doing honor to it, and regard to my own character as a man, and situation as an artist, here a burthen to my friends in England, and deprived of any occa sion that might offer for lightening that burden ; if these things could not move me, 1 do not know what would ; but as you so kindly interest your self in my welfare, I will assure you with great truth, that I have taken care that those anxieties should never interfere with my plan of study, which I saw clearly enough, was the only pillar upon which must be founded all my hopes. " You will oblige me in shewing this letter to Mr. Burke and family, as I shall not write for a 198 LIFE OF [f many minute circumstances. After giving a professional and philosophical view of the various schools in these styles, Sir Joshua observed, that of those who have practised the composite style, and have succeeded in this perilous attempt, perhaps the foremost is Corregio ; his style being founded on modern grace and ele gance, to which is superadded something of the simplicity of the grand style ; conspiring with which effect are breadth of light and colour, the general ideas of the drapery, and an uninterrupted flow of outline. He then allowed, that, next to him, if not his equal, was Parmegiano, whom he described as dig nifying the geriteelness of modern effeminacy, by uniting it with the simplicity pf the ancients, and the grandeur and severity of Michael Angelo. He confessed, indeed, that these two extraordinary men, by endeavouring to give the utmost degree of grace, have sometimes, perhaps, exceeded its boundaries, and have fallen into the most hateful of all hateful qualities — affectation. Still did he adhere to the opinion, that the errors pf genius are pardonable, at the same time that none, even of the more exalted painters, are free 1771.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 26l from them ; but then they have taught us, by the rectitude of their general practice, to correct their Own affected or accidental deviation. Sir Joshua then closed this elaborate and memo rable discourse — a discourse so well adapted to the world at large, as well as to artists, by shew ing, that works of genius and of science, if founded upon the general truths of nature, will live for ever; whilst those which depend upon the locali ties of time and place, or partial views of nature, and on the fluctuations of fashion, must inevitably fade away with those circumstances which have raised them from obscurity. " Present time and future must be considered as rivals, and he who solicits the one must expect to be discountenanced by the other." Before I finish the year 1771. I may mention the sale of Jonathan Richardson's great and curious collection of prints and original drawings. These had been collected by his father and him self, and were to be sold by old Langford the auc tioneer at his room under the Piazza, Covent Gar den. I attended every evening of the sale, by Sir Joshua's desire, and much to my own gratifi cation, as I had never before seen such excel lent works. I purchased for Sir Joshua those lots which he had marked, consisting of a vast number of extraordinary fine" drawings and prints by and from old masters ; which greatly increased his va luable collection. One drawing in particular I 262 LIFE OF [_ETAT. 48. remember, a descent from the cross by Rembrant; in which were to be discovered sixteen alterations, or pentimenti, as the Italians term it, made by Rembrant, on bits of paper stuck upon the diffe rent parts of the drawing, and finished according to his second thoughts. 1772. JETAT. 48. The fame and excellence of Sir JoshuaReynoIds could not fail to draw on him the animadversions of those who , aimed at the character of critics, and who, to preserve that character, judged it ne cessary to mix blame with their warmest praise, lest they should incur the name of flattery, and in this they were doubtless stimulated by the good old rule, that the first part of a knowing critic's duty is to discover blemishes. As a specimen of this, I shall extract a passage from a work pub lished in this year, (1772,) under the title of " Letters concerning the present State of England," in which the writer has blended a strange mix ture of praise and censure ; and, what is most re markable in it is, that the part of criticism which is the most difficult to execute with ability, that is the praise, is here given with much knowledge, discrimination, and truth; and the censure, on the contrary, is either unintelligible or untrue. 1772.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 263 This passage is as follows : " Reynolds is ori ginal in his manner, and as bold and free in his style as any painter that Italy ever produced. Freedom is, indeed, his principal characteristic ; to this he seems to sacrifice every other considera tion : he has, however, two manners ; in one he checks the extreme freedom of his dashing pencil, works his figures more into an expression, that may, in comparison with his other pieces, be called minute ; in these the colouring is natural and good ; — (so far is a very just critique ; J but in his bolder, better works, the colours are grace ful rather than chaste; — (this is absolute nonsense;) they have the ease of drawings, and mark how little attention was given by tbe artist to make them durable. In his attitudes he is generally full of grace, ease, and variety ; he can throw his figures at will into the boldest variations, and ven tures at some postures by which inferior painters would invariably damn their works — (an excel lent remark and true J. His learning in his art is great — (very just) — and this has made him slight colours too much on comparison with drawing ; the latter alone is certainly superior to the former alone;— (exactly the reverse is the truth;) — but the true beauty of fine colouring is an es sentia], and should never be neglected. (Sir Joshua's constant aim was colour.) In a word this painter is more a man of genius than an agree able artist; — (he was both in an eminent degree ;) 264 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 48. — there is more fire than nature in his works ; more enegy than softness ; — (no painter that ever lived had. more softness;) — more ease than beauty; such as will rather awaken knowledge than kin dle pleasure" — (this is false). In contradistinction to the unfounded criticisms on Reynolds's style of painting, already given as extracted from " Letters from England," I trust that Sir Joshua's own remarks on the subject of criticisms on the art will not here be misplaced. " When a picture by a gaudy copier, done in a false and bad taste, is shewn to some pretended connoisseurs, who may have been used to see good pictures, they will immediately, and properly, disapprove of it : not because it is in reality in a bad taste, but because it has a different appear ance from those pictures which have been shewn to them as the best ; for in other matters it will be found that their taste is utterly vulgar, false, and depraved ; whilst he who lias formed to him self a really good taste* will be uniform through out in his judgement. " Out of the great number of critics in this me tropolis, who all pretend to knowledge in pic tures, the greater part must be mere pretenders only. Taste does not come by chance : it is a long and laborious task to acquire it; the mind, * What we call Taste is a kind of extempore judgement; it is a settled habit of distinguishing, without staying to attend to rules, or ratiocination, and arises from long use and experience. 1772.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 265 like a pendulum, must waver this way and that way, before it fixes upon the centre." Again, speaking of critics, he says — " We find the noblest and boldest passages to have been particularly pitched upon for imperti nent criticism. These are the divine boldnesses which, in their very nature, provoke ignorance and short-sightedness to shew themselves ; and who ever is capable of attaining the greatest height, knows for certain he shall be attacked by such as cannot reach it." After this judgement of Sir Joshua's upon cri tics and criticism on the art, I shall venture to give some opinions of my own on the subject, particularly as they are not in opposition to those recorded. It has often struck me as a matter of wonder, why we should so frequently meet with persons who are good judges of literature, yet so seldom with those who are competent judges ofthe graphic arts: and the only way I know to account for this seeming paradox is, to conclude, that the lan guage of the art, as it has been termed, and ex pressed by the pencil, is, to the bulk ofthe world, obscure, or at least far from being familiar to them: yet all conceive themselves qualified to be critics on paintings. As to those numerous connoisseurs in art, whose essays we commonly meet with in the inferior publications, such as daily newspapers, &c, &c, it is both curious and diverting to ob- 266 LIFE OF [iET AT. 48. serve the very odd remarks which they make on the arts, from not having sufficiently studied them. This incompetency to the undertaking gives such an air of childish innocence to their prattle, that, whilst it has no bad motive — no disguised malice at the bottom, it seems a pity to check it; and the severest punishment I would inflict upon them is, that they should be enabled to view their own criticisms with an artist's conception, which would be the most effectual means of put ting a stop to such inanity; for many of those whose criticisms on pictures make them appear to be so very silly in the eyes of artists, are frequently men of very good understanding, and show much judgement in many other matters which come within the sphere of their study, and they would feel severely the contemptible figure they make in uttering opinions frequently so weak, that boys in the schools of art would scorn, and laugh at them : and although these critics conceal their names, and are themselves hid in obscurity, yet, as no one can bear to appear contemptible in his own eyes, surely a man can find no pleasure in its being proved to him that he has played the fool. This description alludes to the attempts at criti cism by the innocent and ignorant; but we have to lament, that, but too often, ephemeral criticism is made the instrument of some base and partial purpose of interest. At times it proceeds from some ill-starred wight, who pines with envy at 1772.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 267 the sight of those powers which he cannot attain. He fain would blast that, fruit which he cannot gather. Every human work, besides its excellen cies, does most commonly contain a large propor tion of defects ; and to point out those defects is too often the sole gratification which feeds the vanity of the superficially learned ; who imagine that they are exalted in the same proportion as v they contribute to the degradation of every pre tender to talents. It also, in some degree, soothes the feelings ofthe unsuccessful and malignant, by persuading them that they have still the power of making their more fortunate competitors, at least for a time, as uncomfortable as themselves : they likewise feel at the moment as if they were really superior to the work over which they seem to triumph — which acts as a cordial to their self- opinion — as an opiate to tortured pride. But it should be recollected, that the critic, in reviewing the object of his criticism, has the advantage of the inventor's experience to assist him, and, thus prepared, finds it not difficult to point out how the work might have been done better; when, perhaps, from his own resources alone, he might not have been able to conceive at first how the work could have been done at all. Criticism, when poured out by the weak or vulgar, has, in some cases, very bad effects. It has a tendency to intimidate the modest and in experienced spirit, who dreads the clamour of pre- 268 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 48. sumptuous ignorance usurping an office, and pe remptorily pretending to set rules for those powers which it cannot comprehend; and it overawes that spirit of exertion which cannot operate with full effect, unless it be perfectly free from fear of controul. To 'snatch a grace beyond the rules of art' is only to be hoped for by those who defy the puny critic and his censures; — the steed which attempts a leap beyond its usual course should fear no check from the rein, as it would inevitably cause both tbe horse and his rider to fall. Thus we see that criticism has the fatal ten dency to paralyze those laudable and energetic efforts to produce works, without which criticism could not exist: criticism is the child that devours its own parent ! The only good that possibly can accrue from the observations o£ those obtrusive minor critics on works of living artists (for as to the dead, there is always justice administered to those against whom no evil passions operate) is, that sometimes, by chance, they may throw out a useful hint ; and also, that the noise they make serves in the place of an advertisement. But if what they have to sayis not the truth, the little hurt falls only on themselves ; yet, if truth is on their side, they have an indubitable right to speak it. Notwith standing, however, that at times their ignorance, or their pertness, is displeasing, they still should be 1772.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 269 viewed with complacency. In these observations indeed, it is but fair to state, that I allude solely to those who, being unable to make a figure equal to their ambition, in a higher department, and yet unwilling to be set wholly aside, consent to prac tise the virtue of humility, patiently join the reti nue of those who are more fortunate than them selves, and are to be considered as proper appen dages to eminence, or in the capacity of train- bearers : and although the office they appear in is to hold up to public view that superfluous part of the garment of merit which is nearest to the dust, yet it still adds dignity even to genius: whilst real criticism, like a tender parent, im proves as it admonishes ; — the justice of its award softening even the severity of its censure. But from the depressed critic (who, I apprehend, is frequently more the object of pity than of anger) much commendation ought not to be expected or required ; no more than song and melody might have been looked for, in their heaviness, from the captive Jews in Babylon. In the course of this year, Sir Joshua painted a particularly fine picture, especially in point of ex pression, of Resignation, and dedicated the print taken from it to Dr. Goldsmith, with some lines under it quoted from his poem of the Deserted Village. This seems to have been done by Sir Joshua as a return of the compliment to Gold smith, who had dedicated the poem to him : and 270 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 48. it drew the following poetical tribute from the talents of Dr. Willis, which, as it relates to those circumstances attending the picture, together with some tolerable criticism as well as praise, I shall insert. " ' Optimum ducem naturam sequimur, — Quod sit meritus ferat.' " Hail Painting! sweet companion of the Nine, For thee shall Taste, the Rose, and Myrtle twine. Amazing art ! whose magic touch can throw O'er canvas Nature's animated glow ! Bid heroes' eyes glare with heroic fire, And love's soft victims languish with desire. Great Nature's shade ! thy mimic power can raise The varying passions, like tbe poet's lays. No more in search of science let us stray Where Maro sung, and Caesar bore the sway : Britain can cherish arts ; her meadows yield As pure an air as does the Appian field; Our monarch reigns, the noblest of his kind, Art's great restorer — ne'er to merit blind : For him shall Painting lasting trophies raise, Historic pencils tell his warlike praise; For him shall Poesy, fir'd with Pindar's flame, To after ages consecrate his fame : For him, with ardour, ev'ry art shall join ; With Alfred's name, rever'd, his blooming laurels twine. 'Tis thine, Oh Reynolds ! to possess the art, By speaking canvas, to affect the heart ; See ! Resignation settled on that eye ; Nature can only with thy pencil vie ! Hail, Resignation source of true repose, Thou best composer of all human woes : Oh come, sweet friend ! thy balmy joys prepare : My genius droops, relax'd by constant care. 1772.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 271 Thy moral picture checks my mournful strain, Some power unseen forbids me to complain ; Tells me, kind Hope dawns sweet from yonder gloom, On years to come awaits a happier doom. Cheer'd with the thought, I bend to Heav'n's high will ; Thy moral picture shall support me still. Where genius shines, its pleasing power I feel, Nor strive my admiration to conceal. Truth guides my pen ; 1 scorn the treach'rous wiles Of servile flattery, affected smiles : Truth needs no dress to make her beauty shine, So poets paint her naked and divine; And genuine Taste may pleasure still acquire, Whilst Thou canst paint, aud Goldsmith tune the lyre! The subject of the foregoing lines calls to my remembrance a fragment of a little poem composed by Miss F. Reynolds, youngest surviving sister ©f Sir Joshua, which surely are possessed of a simplicity and piety highly creditable to her heart, as she in them shews that religion is the only true source of resignation under the evils of this world. " Youth's flow'ry paths I now no more shall tread, But those of age, with horrors overspread : Where the lorn wanderers, melancholy, slow, Sad spectres, monuments of woe ! Ruins of life ! no semblance left by time, No trace remaining of their manhood's prime, Oppress'd with gloom, to cares and fears a prey, Lonely, forlorn, they linger through the day, Pursuing nought, save only to obtain A little space the dregs of life to drain ;^ Tenacious still of what they ne'er enjoy, Wishing to rest, and yet afraid to die ! No cheerful ray illumes the dusky vale, No balmy fragrance floating in the gale, 272 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 48. But dark malignant clouds, and noxious dew, Hang on the cypress sad, and mournful yew ; In sable weeds, which flow with solemn sweep, The weeping willow seems indeed to weep. From this sad prospect of my future days, Bereft of all that nature form'd to please, Involuntary oft I turn mine eye, Where youth, and hope, and sweet affections lie; Where liberal Nature in profusion pours Rich herbage, balmy springs, and fragrant flow'rs: The. landscape smiles around in beauty gay, And cheers the sense with ev'ry charm of May. Alas ! not me to cheer — invidious Time Allows me not to taste of Nature's prime ; Holds np his glass, and bids me mark how low, How black the sand, that yet remains to flow. Methought a veil, of lucid rays compos'd, Disparting wide, an heav'nly form disclos'd ; And as the ground her beauteous foot imprest, Hope's cheerful ray seem'd kindling in my breast. With winning sweetness, yet majestic air, " 1 come," she cried, " thy glooniy soul to cheer ; To guide thy erring will, thy passions sooth, And make the rugged paths of nature smooth, That vale below that fills thy soul with dread, And seems with gloom and horrors overspread, Owes its appearance to thy troubled mind, Deaf to the voice of truth — to reason blind : 'Tis I alone that can the film remove, That dims thy sight, and make yon gloomy grove Smile with immortal fruits, and bloom with flow'rs Fairer than poets feign of Paphian bow'-rs. I am RELIGION, whose all-powerful ray Beams on the darken'd mind celestial day; — Points out the path that leads to pure delight ; And proves this truth — Whatever is is right!" The eminence of Sir Joshua was now so high, that the quantity of complimentary verses which 1772.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 273 were addressed to him would fill a volume, and would be tedious to repeat ; but the following lines I cannot omit, as I think them an excellent instance of the mock heroic, though intended as very serious, and very exquisite. Surely the Genius of Affectation is never so busy, nor tri umphs half so much, as when he attends at the elbow of his favourite poets, and makes them speak thus : — " Feel ye What Reynolds felt, when first the Vatican Unbarr'd her gates, and to his raptur'd eye Gave all the god-like energy that flow'd From Michael's pencil." ¦ The affectation in these lines appears still more gross when we recur to the grand simplicity ofthe character of him to whom they allude, or compare them with those which were last recited. In the discourse delivered this year, (1772,) on the 10th of December, Sir Joshua concluded his series of remarks begun in one of the former years. His grand object in this display was to incite the young students to consider the attainment of the higher excellencies of the art as an acquisition ofthe first importance, though not to the total ex clusion of a search after the subordinate qualifica tions ; which, however, he considered as but of minor consequence : at the same time warning his hearers, that caution and circumspection were not to be lost sight of iu the eagerness of pursuit. VOL. I. t ^74 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 4S. On this part of his subject he particularly noted, that judgement was necessary not only in the ac quisition of these excellencies, but also in their application : for though many would bear to be united, and some even be improved from the union; yet still there Were others which, though perfect in themselves, were of a nature so discordant with their companions, that nothing but incOhgriiity could be produced by their mutual introduction. Here too his meaning was fully exemplified by his illustrations: for, laying it down as a truth that the expression of passion was not in unison with perfect beauty, all the passions producing some degree of distortion and deformity, even in the most beautiful countenances, so those that attempted to preserve beauty, where strong pas* sions ought to be considered as operating power fully upon the personages represented, must inevi tably sacrifice a superior excellence, as Guido has done in many instances, particularly in his Judith, the daughter of Herodias, Andromeda, nay, even in some of the mothers' countenances in the Slaughter ofthe Innocents, which have, thus, little more expression than he has given to his " Venus attired by the Graces." One principle which he had here in view was to guard the artist against the effects of that false cri ticism which so often marks the writings of men who are not of the profession; who being unable te find out tbe real beauties of a performance, merely 1772. J SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 275 find Out that Which they ate before-hand resolved to discover ; and therefore not only praise excel lencies which cannot with propriety exist together, but even dilate upon the expression of mixed pas sions, a thing which his accufate knowledge ofthe human countenance and human heart Well knew to be a thing impossible. He even proved his position from the theory and practice ofthe ancients, who always described their Jupiter as possessed in the aggregate of all those great qualities which were separately enjoyed by subordinate deities; but yet, when they called in the aid of art to represent hini, they confined his character to that of majesty alone, without at tempting to delineate the others. At this part of his discourse he took the oppor- . . tuhity of shewing how much the great Pliny him self resembled some of our modern connoisseurs, when, with something like the cant of modern cri ticism, he stated that the spectator might discover ho less than three different and distinct characters in a statue of Paris, executed by the famous sculp tor Euphranor, and in which were to be seen the dignity of a judge of the goddesses, the lover of Helen, and the conqueror of Achilles ; adding, "A statue in which you endeavour to unite stately dignity, youthful elegance, and stern valour, must surely possess none of those to any great degree." After this he adds, What will be best expressed in his own wbfds : " I do not discourage the younger t 2 276 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 48. students from the noble attempt of uniting all the excellencies of art, but to make them aware, that, besides the difficulties which attend every arduous attempt, there is a peculiar difficulty in the choice of the excellencies which ought to be united. I wish you to attend to this, that you may try your selves, whenever you are capable of that trial, what you can, and what you cannot do ; and that, instead of dissipating your natural faculties over the immense field of possible excellence, you may choose some particular walk in which you may exercise all your powers ; in order each of you to be the first in his way." In exemplification of the judicious choice of excellence, he observed, that Lodovico Caracci, in p*artjcular, was well acquainted with the works both of Corregio and ofthe Venetian painters, and also knew the principles by which they produced those pleasing effects which, at first glance, pre possess us so much in their favour ; but then he stated, that he took only as much from each as would embellish, but not overpower, that manly strength and energy of style which form his pecu liar character. In speaking of Styles he also shewed, that al though the Ornamental cannot, with propriety, be considered as a principal, it is still expedient to be called in to soften the harshness and mitigate the severity ofthe great style, which latter being that ofthe greatest masters, Michael Angelo, and Raf- 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 277 faelle, is principally to be found in fresco paintings, a mode of execution which excludes attention to minute elegancies. The concluding part of this discourse may be considered as the Jewel of Connoisseurs ; for in it they will find a plain, simple, yet delicate investi gation ofthe merits of those two great masters, as well as of Salvator Rosa, Carlo Maratti, Poussin, Rubens, &c, an investigation founded on the dic tates of taste, genius, and sound sense, and the more particularly valuable from being cleared of all the tinsel of terms, which only serve to give a glare to ignorance. 1773; .-ETAT^ 49. The intimate friendship between Dr. Johnson and Sir Joshua still existed in its full force; yet so flattering were the compliments which Johnson properly chose to pay to Mrs. Thrale, who sin cerely esteemed him, that we find him writing to her, in tbe month of February, 1773, after a slight illness, for her approbation of his visiting at his friend's house: he says, ".I have an invitation to dine at Sir Joshua Reynolds's on Tuesday; may I accept it ? I have undertaken to beg from you the favour of lending Miss Reynolds, Newton on the Prophecies, &c." This, however, was, pro bably, mere matter of compliment, or to consult her on its safety in respect to his returning health ; 278 LIFE OP [.ETAT. 49- for Sir Josbua's house and table were always open to his friends, with invitation or without, and as freely made use of. To Goldsmith, in particular, he was always at tentive; a man of whom it has been, not unaptly, said, that his carelessness of conduct, and frivolity of manners, obscured the goodness of his heart. Mr. Cumberland, in his own Memoirs, has a pas sage peculiarly illustrative of this, where he says, that " Sir Joshua Reynolds was very good to b'ra) and would have drilled him into better trim and order for society, if he would have been amenable ; for Reynolds was a perfect gentleman, had good sense, great propriety, with all the social attributes, and all the graces of hospitality, equal to any man. He well knew how to ippreeiate men of talents, and how near akin the Muse of Poetry was to that Art of which he was so eminent a master. From Goldsmith he caught the subject of his famous Ugolino ; what aids he got from others, if he got any, were worthily .bestowed, and happily applied." Mr. Cumberland, however, is, perhaps, rather inaccurate in his assertion respecting the painting of *' Ugolino," which was finished in this year, (1773,) and begun, not long before, as an historical subject. The fact is, that this painting may be said to have been produced as an historical picture by an accident : for the head of the Count had been painted previous to the year 1771, and finished on 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 279 what we painters call " a half length canvas," and was, in point of expression, exactly as it now stands, but without any intention, on the part of Sir Joshua, of making it the subject of an histori cal composition, or having the story of Count Ugolino in his thoughts. Being exposed in the picture gallery, along with his other works, it was seen, either by Mr- Edmqpd Burke, or Dr. Gold smith, I am not certain which, who immediately exclaimed, that it struck, him as being the precise per-son, countenance, and expression of the Count Ugolino, as described by Dante in his " Inferno." This affecting description is given in the thirty-- third Canto of the first part of his Comedia, where, in his supposed passage through hell, he introduces Ugolino gnawing the head of his treacherous and cruel enemy, the Archbishop Ruggjero, and then telling his own sad story on the appearance of the poet. The historical facts are simply these, that in the latter end of the thirteenth century there were great, intestine divisions, in the city and state of Pisa in Italy, for the sovereignty ; divisions which gave rise to the well known contests ofthe Guelphs and Ghibellines. The former of these consisted of two parties, at the head of which were Visconti and Ugolino: whilst the Archbishop Ruggiero led the third. Between this latter and Ugolino a compromise took place, by which means Visconti and his par- 280 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 49 tizans were driven out ; when Ruggiero, finding the Guelph faction considerably weakened, imme diately plotted against his quondam friend, al ready elected sovereign. The mob being excited by the crafty priest against their new prince, the unfortunate Ugolino was overpowered, and he and his two sons, together with two grandsons, were then conveyed to the city prison, where they re mained some months, until the Pisans being ex communicated by the Pope, they became so en raged, that they determined to revenge themselves on the unhappy prisoners; and having accord ingly strongly secured and barricadoed the doors ofthe dungeon, they threw the keys' of the prison into the river Arno, so that Ugolino and his un happy offspring perished. Thus far tbe historian — when the imagination of the poet undertook to fill up the awful hiatus between tbe sealing of their doom and the last moment of expiring nature : and of the poet's powers I am happy to be able to give an illustra tion, in the following beautiful translation by my friend Mr. Nathaniel Howard, of Plymouth, De von, who is an ornament to his country : \*l " La Bocca.s'allevrj dal fiero pasto Quel peccator," &c. " The sinner pausing from his grim repast Wip'd in the miscreant's hair his gory jaws, ' My desperate woe, obedient to thy will, I now relate,' he answer'd; • tho* with pain 1773-] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 281 Remembrance wring my heart. For if my tale • Should to this traitur, whom I gnaw, produce The fruit of infamy, tho' tears gush forth, Yet will I speak. — I know not whence thou art, Or what commission brings thee to this gulf, But speech, in truth, bespeaks thee Tuscan born. Know, Ugolino and that prelate base, Ruggiero, meet thy presence; mark our forms. I need not mention that his evil mind First wronar'd my confidence, I hen caused ray death ; But what lies undivulg'd shall now be heard, The cruel manner of my lingering doom : Then, shalt thou learn the colour of his guilt. Within the iron dungeon, which still bears The name of " Famine" since my dreadful death, And still, where others pine, there thro' the grate Shone many a moon ; and oft my feverish dreams Unveil'd the future to my' mental view. This priest, I dreamt, was leader of the chase ;— Swift to the Julian mountain, with his whelps, Hurried the wolf: wjth blood-hounds gaunt and keen — Lanfranchi and Sismondi, and the chief Gualundi follow'd. Soon the course was spent ; The victim and his infant race grew faint : When on tbem sprang, I thought, the savage pack, And with their tusks transpierc'd their panting sides. This wak'd me ere the dawn ; when, in their sleep, I heard my children groan and call for bread- • Oh cruel ! should no pity touch thy soul To think how much a father's heart presag'd ?— If now thou shed'st no tears, what have thy eyes Been us'il to weep at ? Now my boys awoke: The hour arriv'd, when each expected food, As wonted, would be brought him;— but his heart Mistrusted, when each thought upon his dream. And I, O horrible ! that instant heard The dungeon doors, below, more firmly lock'd : In desp'rate silence on my sons I gaz'd— I could not weep— My heart was tuin'.d to s.ooj:. 282 LIFE OF [/ETAT, 49. The little victims, wept; and one began, My dear Ansel rno: ' Father ! yahy that /apt? — * What ails my father?'— Mi ! I could not weep, Nor answer all that day, nor yet the night, . 'Till on the world another morn arose. As faintly thro' our doleful prison gl.earn'c| The trem'lous ray, so I could view again Each face, on which my features were imprest ;— Both hands I gnaw'd in agony and rage. Sweet innocents ! they thought me hunger-stung, And, rising on a sudden, all exclaim'd, ' Father ! our anguish would be less severe ' If thou would'st feed on us, Thjs fleshly vest * Thou did'st bestow, now take it back again.' — • I check'd my inward nature, lest my groans Should aggravate their anguish. j$ll were mute That bitter day, and all the morrow. Earth ! Why did'st thou not, obdurate earth ! dispart ? The fourth sad morning came, when at my feet My Gaddo fell extended : ' Help !' he cried, ' Can'st thou not help me, father ?' — aijd. expired. So wither'd, as thou see'st me ; one by one, I saw my children, ere the sixth noon die : And, seiz'd with sudden blindness, on my knees I grop'd among them, calling each by name For three days after they were dead. — At last, Famine and death clos'd up the scene of woe.' " So havipg said, with dark, distorted eyes, He on the wretched s,kqll ififix'd his teeth, And, like a mastiff, gnaw'd the solid hone." After this exquisite detail by the poet, the sub ject was taken up by the sculptor, and Richard son, in his ;' Science of a Connoisseur," relates that Michael Angelo Buonarotti composed a bas- relief of the count sitting with his four children, one of which lav dead at his feet: over their heads 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 283 was a figure to represent Famine, and beneath them another, personifying tbe river Arno, on whose banks the tragedy was acted. The whole subject is well bandied by Richard son, the painter, and may be read with pleasure, as relative to the picture, although written long be fore the idea started by Burke was adopted by Sir Joshua, who immediately had his canvas enlarged, in order that he might be enabled to add the other figures, and to complete his painting of the impres sive description ofthe Italian poet. The picture, when finished, was bought by the late Duke of Dorset for four hundred guineas; and it has since been noticed by Dr. Joseph War- ton, who, in his Essay on the Genius and Writ ings of Pope, introduces the story in exemplifica tion of some pathetic passages in that writer ; and then adds — " Sir Joshua Reynolds, whose mind is stored with great and exalted ideas, has lately shown, by a picture on this subject, how qualified he is to preside at a Royal Academy, and that he has talents that ought not to be confined to por trait painting." The following lines were made as descriptive of the surprise and astonishment of Omiah, a native of Otaheite, when he was introduced to see the painting of Count Ugolino in Sir Joshua Rey nolds's gallery. ' " But ah ! what scene now strikes with wild affright? What heart-felt horrors pain, my aching sight !• — 284 LIFE OF [-ETAT. 49. Say, rev'rend Sire, whence all this mis'ry ? — speak ? Why sits pale hunger preying on thy cheek ? Why on thy brow that dark despondent gloom ? — What hand, accurst, has wrought thy barb'rous doom J Say, whence these piteous babes in early breath The fated prey of unrelenting death ? > He hears me not; but, fix'd in silent grief, The torlur'd soul is lost lo all relief! Speak, hoary wretch ! Oh make these mis'ries known -^ Nor, sunk in woe, be thus transforin'd to stone ! Thou shalt not die — to nature this I owe : Sweet mercy lives, — and lives the friend of woe ! I fly to free them ' when, with strange surprize, His honest fingers contradict his eyes : With wonder struck, he doubts which sense is true ; Returns to touch, and is convinc'd anew. 'Twas fiction all — illusion and deceit ; Magic and Reynolds wrought the wond'rous cheat : His mimic pencil nature's fire has caught, And paints at once the feature and the thought." Any anecdotes of Reynolds's paintings must be acceptable ; in addition, therefore, to the cir cumstances connected with the " Ugolino," I may here record, that the picture of " the Chil dren in the Wood," by Sir Joshua, may be said also to have been produced by an accident, at least as an historical composition: for when the Beggar Infant, who was sitting to him for some other picture, during the sitting fell asleep, Rey nolds was so pleased with the innocence of the object, that he would not disturb its repose to go on with the picture on which he was engaged, but took up a fresh canvas, and quickly painted the child's head as it lay before it moved ; and as the 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 2S.5 infant altered its position, still in sleep, he sketched another view of its head on the same canvas. ' He afterwards finished a back ground of a woody scenery, and by adding the robin red-breast con verted it into the subject of the Children in the Wood.* Some time after this, his pencil gave to the world another historical subject of great celebrity, the Infant Jupiter, now the property ofthe Duke of Rutland. f When Goldsmith's comedy of " She Stoops to Conquer," was to be brought out on the stage, on the 15th of March in this year, he was at a loss what name to give it, till the very last mo ment, and then, in great haste, called it " She Stoops to Conquer, or the Mistakes of a Night." Sir Joshua, who disliked this name for a play, offered a much better to him, saying, " You ought to call it the Belle's Stratagem, and if you do not I will damn it." However, Goldsmith chose to * The mother of the beggar infant at one time had nearly giveu a finale to Sir Joshua's studies from this subject, whilst he was employed in painting from it, by carelessly letting the child fall over her arm on the floor, which, as she sat at the time in a chair raised some height above it, made the fall very considerable ; but, by great good fortune, the child received no material injury from the accident. f It may not be undeserving of notice, that there is a duplicate of the Infant Jupiter (possessed by the Duke of Rutland ;) as 1 well remember having prepared a copy for Sir Joshua in a ground work on black and white. 286 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 49. name it himself, as above ; and Mrs. Cowley has since given that name to one of her comedies. Goldsmith was in great aftxiety about its suc cess : he Was much distressed in his finances at the time, and all his hopes hung on the event ; and at the dinner preceding tbe representation of his piay, his mouth became so parched and dry, from the agitation of his mind, that he Was unable to swallow a Single mouthful. The actors them selves had great doubts of its success : but, con trary to their expectations, the play was received with great applause ; Sir JoshUa and a large party of friends going fot the purpose of supporting it if necessary. The dinner party, which took place at the Shakspeare, is humourously described by Cumberland. Dr. Johnson took the head of the table, and there were pteserit the Burkes, Caleb Whiteford, Major Mills, &c, &ti.* When the play was in preparation at the theatre, Miss Reynolds, with a few other ladies, her friends, accompanied by Goldsmith, went one morning to the house to attend its rehearsal. Mr. Shuter afterwards performed a principal character in this play, in which he displayed infinite spirit; * I recollect that Dr. Goldsmith gave me an order soon after this, with which I went to see this comedy; and the next time I saw him, he inquired of me what my opinion was of it. I told bim that 1 would not presume to be a judge of its merits ; he asked, " Did it make you laugh ?" I answered, " Exceedingly." «* Then," said the Doctor, " that is all I require." 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 287 yet wheh be appeared before this small and select attdiehee, he betrayed the strongest marks of shy ness, even to bashfulness : which proves that the smallest novelty in situation, or deviation from ac customed habits, is sufficient to discompose the veteran professor ; for when Shuter appeared be fore a crowded house, he always felt himself per fectly easy.* It was about this' period that Goldsmith, ever featfbl of being thought insignificant, was much offended with Garrick, who he conceived had treated him on some occasions with great hauteur. In relating the matter to Sir Joshua, he said he could not suffer such airs of superiority from one who was only a poor player; but Sir Joshua re plied, " No, no, don't say that ; he is no poor player surely." Speaking to Sir Joshua concerning Goldsmith, I asked his opinion of him as a poet, and if he did * I remember another similar instance, which a late illustrious General told me of himself; that being at some distance from London with* his regiment, the King, Queen, and several others of the Royal Family, together with Mr. Pitt, and many ministers of state as well as courtiers, came to see the review, which was te take place that morning, he commanding as the General : when, beingin the presence of persbnages.so conspicuously high, either for rank or fclents, he confessed that he felt, while con versing with them, an aukward shyness ; but immediately on mounting his horse, and manoeuvring at the head of his troops, lie became as perfectly unembarrassed as if he was at home; and could not help laughing to himself, when he saw what droll figures some of the courtiers made, mounted on chargers. 28S LIFE OF [.ETAT. 49. not consider him as very excellent : his answer was, that Goldsmith, as a poet, he believed, was about the degree of Addison. Goldsmith, it is well known, was of an impru dent and careless disposition, insomuch, thati have heard Sir Joshua remark of him, in times of his greatest distress, he was often obliged to supplicate a friend for the loan of ten pounds for his imme diate relief; yet, if by accident a distressed peti tioner told him a piteous tale, nay if a subscription for any folly was proposed to him, he, without any thought of his own poverty, would, with an air of generosity, freely bestow on the person, who soli cited for it, the very loan he had himself but just before obtained. One day Dr. Johnson and Dr. Goldsmith meet ing at Sir Joshua Reynolds's table, the conversa tion turned on the merits of that well known tra gedy, Otway's Venice Preserved, which Goldsmith highly extolled, asserting, that of all tragedies it was the one nearest in excellence to Shakspeare ; when Johnson, in his peremptory manner, con tradicted him, and pronounced that there were not forty good lines to be found in the whole play ; adding, " Pooh ! what stuff are these lines : — c What feminine tales hast thou been listening to, of unaired shirts, catarrhs, and tooth-ach got by thin soled shoes ?' " " True," replied Goldsmith, " to be sure that is very like Shakspeare." 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 289 Sir Joshua used to say, that he thought any man of tolerable capacity might write a tragedy, such as an audience would receive from the stage with out objection ; but that it required a real genius for humour, together with considerable taste, to write a comedy. The remark has been made by Sorbiere, an eminent French physician, who gives ample reasons for this opinion."* * " More tragedies than comedies are produced. Young men first make an attempt at tragedy ; not being able, for want of knowledge and experience, to attempt any other kind of writing. Their hero of the tragedy is, for the most part, a fictitious cha racter, and Phoebus and the Muses are invoked to fit him out for appearing. On the contrary, the characters of a comedy are such as we meet with daily in the streets at every turn ; and we _iave only to transcribe their words and actions. It is true, that those we esteem the most excellent painters are not frequently the best copyists ; and that good historians are not always skilful in drawing characters. But, perhaps, this is a defect in them ; and, to speak fairly, the painter who copies nature exactly, and with art, is surely as deserving of our praise as he who cannot paint after nature, but looks for an original in his caprice. Tt appears that comedy is the most difficult of dramatic works : as the poet imitates characters which are under the observation of all, and whose opinions must confirm the likeness of the portrai ture. The style of comedy is less arduous than that of tragedy : as there is less art in running very fast, and skipping up and down, than in a regular march or a graceful dance. Yet it is not so difficult to soar in heroic verse as to represent common life ; which requires a steady and vigorous pencil." Samuel Sorbiere, an eminent physician in Paris, in the time of Louis XIV, and patronized by Cardinal Mazarin, was born in the year 1610, and died in 1670. Sir Joshua thought that species of the drama, called tragi comedy, was natural, because similar to the combinations ofeyents, which are frequently met with in real life. VOL. I. U 290 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 49- When the much praised tragedy of Braganza was brought out on the stage at Drury Lane Theatre, Sir Joshua went to the first representa tion, and sat in the orchestra, a place he always preferred on account of his difficulty of hearing ; he was accompanied by Mr. Garrick. The per formance of Mrs. Yates, as Duchess of Braganza, gave universal satisfaction, and was received with the greatest applause. I heard Sir Joshua say, that when he turned to see how Garrick felt on the occasion he perceived his eyes suffused with tears. Mr. Edmund Burke had great objection to that scene in the tragedy, in which poison is intended to be given infused in the holy wafer, he seemed to conceive it to be a new invention, saying such dreadful modes of wickedness ought not to have been divulged to the world. But surely Mr. Burke must have known that it had been practised be fore the drama of Braganza was ever thought of, and that it has been also recorded in history. The following elegant letter to Sir Joshua, as it relates to one of his most distinguished perform ances, together with his answer, in which that work is described, certainly cannot be unacceptable to the reader. " To Sir Joshua Reynolds. " DEAR SIR JOSHUA, " This letter will be delivered to you by Miss , who intends to sit to you with her, two sisters, to compose a picture, of which I am 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 291 to have the honour of being the possessor. I wish to have their portraits together at full length, re presenting some emblematical or historical subject; the idea of which, and the attitudes which will best suit their forms, cannot be so well imagined as by one who has so eminently distinguished himself by his genius and poetic invention. Give me leave to mention to you (notwithstanding I am well assured you want no incitement to make your works complete,) that besides the advantage you will have in the superiority ofthe beauty and elegance of those subjects which no doubt will of themselves convey a degree of instruction, you will, I hope, find that these young ladies, from their high opinion of your powers, will not spare their time, in order to render this picture in every particular a most superior production. I shall add the honour you will acquire in conveying to pos terity the resemblances of three sisters so distin guished for different species of beauty ; and what I flatter myself will not be the smallest reason for particular attention to this work, the great obliga tion you will confer on me in making it perfect. " I am with great esteem, " Dear Sir Joshua, " Your very sincere friend and humble servant. " Dublin, May 27th, 1773. Sir Joshua after having begun this capital pic ture, proposed to hi in in the foregoing letter, and u-2 292 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 49. having proceeded so far in it as to finish the three portrait heads, and sketch the outline of the com position, was induced to take a trip to Ports mouth with a party of friends on the occasion of the King's reviewing the navy at that port ; and afterwards went to Oxford, as will be noticed again. On his return he wrote the following answer to the above letter. " Sir, " I intended long ago to have returned you thanks for the agreeable employment in which you have engaged me, and likewise for the very obliging manner in which this favour was con ferred ; but immediately after the heads were finished, I was enticed away to Portsmouth, and from thence to Oxford, from whence I am but just returned ; so tbat this is the first quiet minute I have had for this month past ; though it is a little delayed by these holidays, it will not, upon the whole, fare the worse for it, as I am returned with a very keen appetite to the work. This picture is the great object of my mind at present. You have been already informed, I have no doubt, of the subject which we have chosen ; the adorning a Term of Hymen with festoons of flowers. This affords sufficient employment to the figures, and gives an opportunity of introducing a variety of graceful historical attitudes. I have every induce ment to exert myself on this occasion, both from 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 293 the confidence you have placed in me, and from the subjects you have presented to me, which are such as I am never likely to meet with again as long as I live, and I flatter myself that, however inferior the picture may be to what I wish it, or what it ought, it will be the best picture I ever painted. I beg leave to congratulate you and Mrs. G , and express my sincere wishes for that perfect happiness to which you are both so well intitled. " I am, with great respect, &c. "Joshua Reynolds. " I shall send away your picture (the best of the two) immediately ; the other I know is to re main here. I have forgot to what place it is to be _. >» sent The visit to Oxford, mentioned in the foregoing letter, gained an additional honour to be conferred upon Sir Joshua, the variety of whose talents, added to the eminence he had acquired, qualified him to share the honours of the first scientific in stitutions, and in consequence of which he had, for some time before the present period, been admitted to the Royal, Antiquarian, and Dilletante Societies; and when the late Earl of Guildford, then Lord North, was installed Chancellor of the University of Oxford, in the first week of July in this year, Sir Joshua was, at the same time, admitted to the honorary degree of Doctor of Civil Law. 294 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 49. On that day fifteen persons Only were admitted; and it is a remarkable fact, that Sir Joshua, and Dr. Beattie just arrived from Scotland, were the only two who were distinguished by an encomium from Dr. Vansittart, the Professor of Civil Law, whose duty it is to present the graduates to the Chancellor. It is also well known to be custom ary, when the graduate bows and takes his seat, that there should, on particular occasions, be a clapping of hands in the theatre, sometimes loud, and sometimes but faint ; on this occasion, how ever, it is related, that those two were the only personages who received any marks of extraordi nary applause. Sir Joshua about this time, after repeated and most earnest invitations from a noble duke, to visit him at his splendid mansion, at length complied with his request, and arriving in the evening he was much mortified to find a very cold reception both from the duke and duchess, for which he was totally unable to account, as previously they had always be«.n so gracious ; when afterwards relating the circumstance to his sister, she asked him if he appeared before them in his boots, just as he came off his journey, and not in his evening dress ; he answered yes. Then said she, that was tbe vftTy reason ; they thought it a mark of grfeat disrespect in your not complying with the etiquette. I remember Dr. Jenner told me a circumstance something similar of a physician in the country, 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 295 who was called upon to visit a duchess then in the neighbourhood, who was near dying of an inflam mation in her bowels, and when he came to the house, having rid on horseback, the attendant ser vant on the duchess would not suffer him to enter the sick apartment, though her grace was in such immediate and imminent danger of her life, until he had equipped himself in silk stockings, shoes, and buckles, which they lent him for that purpose. Sir Joshua entertained a great friendship for Dr. Beattie, whom he esteemed as an honest humble man of considerable abilities : indeed, it forms a very prominent feature in the " Life" of the latter, where it is dwelt on with an allowable degree of complacency, that Sir Joshua paid him much at tention during his visits to London, (respecting him more for his virtues than his talents,) fre quently entertaining him, both at his house in town, and at his villa on Richmond Hill, testify ing, by every means in his power, the esteem he felt for him as a friend, and the opinion he held respecting his writings; while, as Sir William Forbes adds, Dr. Beattie 1?' on the other hand, loved Sir Joshua, for the amiable simplicity of his manners and character, and justly admired the masterly productions of his pencil, as well as duly appreciated his merit in the composition of those truly classical discourses which he delivered to the students in the Royal Academy." 296 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 49. The gentleman above alluded to will, I have no doubt, excuse me in this instance for availing my self of some particulars in his work, highly ho nourable to both of his amiable and deceased friends, and which refer pointedly to the present part of the subject. Sir William observes, that how properly Dr. Beattie estimated the various talents of Sir Joshua, may be drawn from an ex tract of his diary, and which he transcribed in the Doctor's own words, because, being a. private re cord merely of his own thoughts, it may be relied ' on as speaking the genuine language of his heart. This extract is dated Sunday the 15th of" August, and says, " We proposed (Dr. and Mrs. B.) to have gone to Arno's Grove, but Sir Joshua Rey nolds insisted on it, that we should stay till to morrow, and partake of a haunch of venison with him to-day, at his house on Richmond Hill. Ac cordingly at eleven, Mrs. Beattie, Miss Reynolds, Mr. Baretti, and Mr. Palmer, set out in Sir Jo shua's coach for Richmond. At twelve he and I went in a post chaise, and by the way paid a visit to the Bishop of Chester,* who was very earnest for us to fix a day for dining with him ; but I could not fix one just now, on account of the pre sent state of my affairs. After dining at Richmond, we all returned to town, about eight o'clock. This day I had a great deal of conversation with * Dr. Markham. 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 297 Sir Joshua Reynolds on critical and philosophical subjects. I find him to be a man, not only of ex cellent taste in painting and poetry, but of an en larged understanding and truly philosophical mind. His notions of painting are not at all the same with those that are entertained by the generality of painters and others. Artificial and contrasted attitudes, and groupes, he makes no account of ; it is the truth and simplicity of nature which he is ambitious to imitate ; and these, it must be al lowed, he possesses the art of blending with the most exquisite grace, the most animated expres sion. He speaks with contempt of those who suppose grace to consist in erect position, turned out toes, or the frippery of modern dress. Indeed, whatever account we make of the colouring of this great artist, (which some people object to,) it is impossible to deny him the praise of being the greatest designer of any age. In his pictures there is a grace, 'a variety, an expression, a simpli city, which I have never seen in the works of any other painter. His portraits are distinguished from all others, by this, that they exhibit an exact imita tion, not only of the features, but also of the cha racter of the person represented. His picture of Garrick, between Tragedy and Comedy, he tells me he finished in a week," &c. &c This al though but an aukward description of Sir Joshua's character, yet I insert to shew what an impression his talents had made on the simplicity of Beattie. §98 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 49. Dr. Beattie has also strongly marked his high admiration of his friend in his Essay on Poetry and Music, where he joins his name with that of Raffaelle. In this, having first given praise to both for their assuming nature as their model, to tbe utter exclusion of fashion, at least as far as is possible, he adds, that " on this account their . works must give pleasure, and appear elegant as long as men are capable of forming general ideas, and of judging from them. The last mentioned incomparable artist (meaning Sir Joshua,) is par ticularly observant of children, whose looks and attitudes, being less under the controul of art, and local manners, are more characteristical of the species than those of men and women. This field of observation supplied him with many fine fi gures, particularly that most excellent one of Co medy, struggling for and winning (for who can re sist her?) the affections of Garrick — a figure which could never have occurred to the imagina tion of a painter who had confined his views to grown persons, looking and moving in all the for mality of polite life — a figure which, in all ages and countries, would be pronounced natural and en gaging." To all these testimonies in favor of Sir Joshua, Sir William Forbes adds, from his own pen, this elegant compliment : " To that great artist, and excellent man, whose house one of our mutual friends has well denominated the common centre 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 299 of union for the great, the accomplished, the learned and .the ingenious, I must equally pay my grateful acknowledgments for the uninterrupted friendship with which he honoured me, as well as for an introduction to the notice of some distin guished characters, to whom I should not other wise have had the means of being known." There is a remarkably fine allegorical picture painted by Sir Joshua, representing the portrait of Dr. James Beattie. The progress of this celebrated picture is de scribed in Dr. Beattie's Diary, where he says, " August 16th, (Monday,) breakfasted with Sir Joshua Reynolds, who this day began the allego rical picture. I sat to him five hours, in which time he finished my head, and sketched out the rest of my figure. The likeness is most striking, and the execution most masterly. The figure is as large as life. The plan is not yet fixed for the rest ofthe picture. Though I sat five hours I was not in the least fatigued ; for by placing a large mirror opposite to my face, Sir Joshua Reynolds put it into my power to see every stroke of his pencil ; and I was greatly entertained to observe the progress of the work, and the easy and mas terly manner of the artist, which differs as much from that of all the other painters 1 have seen at work,' as the execution of Giardini on the violin differs from that of a common fiddler." 300 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 49. This portrait of Beattie, when finished, repre sented the doctor in his university dress as Doctor of Laws, with his volume on tbe Immutability of Truth under his arm. The angel of Truth is going before him and beating down the Vices, Envy, Falsehood, &c. which are represented by a group of figures falling at his approach, and the principal head in this group is made an exact like ness of Voltaire. When Dr. Goldsmith called on Sir Joshua and saw this picture, 'he was very in dignant at it, and remonstrated with him, saying, " It very ill becomes a man of your eminence and character, Sir Joshua, to condescend to be a mean flatterer, or to wish to degrade so high a genius as Voltaire before so mean a writer as Dr. Beattie ; for Dr. Beattie and his book together will, in the space of ten years, not be known ever to have been in existence, but your allegorical picture, and the fame of Voltaire will live for ever to your disgrace as a flatterer." So much was said respecting tbe allegorical meaning of Dr. Beattie' s picture at the time, that I may be permitted to take some further notice of it ; particularly as it gave rise to attacks upon Sir Joshua, not only as to his judgement in its concep tion, but as to his prudence and propriety in ma king personal allusions. Whilst it was yet in its progress, Mrs. Monta gue wrote to Beattie on the subject, saying, " I 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. SOI am delighted with Sir Joshua Reynolds's plan, and do not doubt but he will make a very noble picture of it. I class Sir Joshua with the greatest geniuses that have ever appeared in tbe art of painting ; and I wish he was employed by the public in some great work that would do honour to our country in future ages. He has the spirit of a Grecian artist. The Athenians did not em ploy such men in painting portraits to place over a chimney or the door of a private cabinet. I long to see the picture he is now designing ; virtue and truth are subjects worthy of the artist and the man. He has an excellent moral character, and is most pleasing and amiable in society ; and with great talents has uncommon humility and gentle ness." Sir William Forbes enters, indeed, more parti cularly into the subject ; and, in addition to my own testimony, that Sir Joshua meant not per sonally to offend any one by the composition, (though he was not offended himself at some like ness being discovered, as I shall shew by a letter in a subsequent part of this Memoir,) I shall give part of Sir William's observations on this point. He says, "In this inestimable piece, which ex hibits an exact resemblance of Dr. Beattie's coun tenance, at that period ; he is represented in the gown of Doctor of Laws, with which he was so recently invested at Oxford. Close to the' por trait, the artist has introduced an angel, holding .302 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 49. in one hand a pair of scales, as if weighing Truth in the balance, and with the other hand pushing down three hideous figures, supposed to represent Sophistry, Scepticism, and Infidelity ; in allusion to Dr. Beattie's Essay on Truth, which had been the foundation of all his fame, and of all the dis tinction which had been paid him. " The likeness of Dr. Beattie was most striking, and nothing can exceed the beauty of the angel. The whole composition, as well as execution, is in the very best manner of that inimitable painter, and it has had the good fortune, not always the case with Sir Joshua's pictures, masterly as they are in every other respect, of perfectly preserving the colouring, which is as beautiful at the distance of upwards of thirty years as it was at first, with as much of mellowness only as one could desire. " Of this admirable performance, Sir Joshua was pleased to make Dr. B. a present, of which he was very justly proud. He preserved it with the ut most care, keeping it always covered with a green silk curtain, and left it to his niece Mrs. Glennie." A mezzotinto print has been done from it, and there is also a very handsome engravipg from it, in Forbes's Life of Beattie ; and that writer adds, Li Because one of these figures was a lean figure, (alluding to the subordinate ones introduced,) and the other a fat one, people of lively imagina tions pleased themselves with finding in them the portraits of Voltaire and Hume. But Sir Joshua, 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 303 I have reason to believe, had no such thought when he painted those figures." It is a curious circumstance, too, that Dr. Beat- tie either mistook the allegorical design himself, or else gave it intentionally another meaning, per haps out of modesty, for he says, in one of his letters, that the figures represent Prejudice, Scep ticism, and Folly, who are shrinking away from the light of the sun that beams on the breast ofthe angel ! In tbe latter part of the summer, Sir Joshua made an excursion to Plymouth, whilst on a visit to Plympton; a visit of compliment, for having already been made a freeman of his native town of Plympton, this mark of respect was followed by his being chosen alderman and mayor of that bo rough, generally called Plympton Maurice, or Earl's Plympton.* On this occasion he presented his portrait, painted by himself, to the corporation, who placed it in the town hall. It is a good picture with a light sky back ground, and in his academical dress as doctor of laws, -j- * To distinguish it from Plympton St Mary's, formerly a con vent of Benedictines, about half a mile distant, the abbot of which was lord of the manor, and sat in the house of peers. After the dissolution of religious houses, the town was incorpo rated by a charter granted in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, un der a mayor, recorder, eight aldermen, or principal burgesses, who are called common couucilmen, a bailiff, and town clerk, &c. f The Rev. Mr. Alcock, vicar of Cornwood, a parish in the 304 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 49- So strongly was Sir Joshua attached to the place of his birth, that he declared that this cir cumstance of his being chosen as mayor, gave him more pleasure than any other honour which he had received during his life : and this sentiment he. declared, on one occasion, when it was rather out of place ; as the following anecdote will shew. Of the small villa already mentioned in Dr. Beat- tie's Diary, which Sir Joshua built for his recrea tion, on Richmond Hill, Sir William Chambers was the architect ; but not because it was in tended to make any display of taste in the build ing, for convenience alone was consulted in it. In the summer season it was the frequent custom of Sir Joshua to dine at this place with select par ties of his friends, lt happened some little time before he was to be elected Mayor of Plympton, neighbourhood, presented to Sir Joshua the following distich on the receipt of this valuable present to the corporation. " Laudat Romanus Raphaelem, Gisecus Apellem, Plympton Reynolden jactat, utrique parem." But the new mayor though perhaps pleased with the compli ment, modestly declared that he thought it would be assuming too much honour to himself, to have it affixed to, or even put On the back of, the picture. There is another portrait of him in the neighbourhood painted when young, and now in the possession of T. Lane, Esq. of Cof- flett, about three miles firm Plympton. In this picture he holds one hand over to shadow his eyes, an attitude often chosen by painters when they paint their own portraits. It is the original picture from which the print was taken tbat is annexed to this memoir. 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 305 as already mentioned, that one day, after dining at the house, himself and his party took an evening walk in Richmond Gardens, when, very unexpectedly, at a turning of one of the avenues, they suddenly met the King, accompanied by a part of the Royal Family ; and as his Majesty saw him, it was im possible for him to withdraw without being no ticed. The King called to him, and immediately entered into conversation, a^id told him that he had been informed of the office that he was soon to be invested with, that of being made the Mayor of his native town of Plympton. Sir Joshua was astonished that so minute and inconsiderable a circumstance, which was of importance only to himself, should have come so quickly to the know ledge of the King ; but he assured his Majesty of its truth, saying that it was an honour which gave him more pleasure thart any other he had ever re ceived in his life ; and then, luckily recollecting himself, added, " except that which your Majesty was graciously pleased to bestow upon me;" al luding to his knighthood. About this period, and towards the latter end of 1773, a circumstance arose which promised to be highly beneficial to the Art, but which unfortu nately did not fulfil its early promises. The chapel of Old Somerset- House, which had been given by his Majesty to the Royal Academy, was mentioned one evening at the meeting, as a place which offered a good opportunity of con- vol. 1. x 306 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 49- vincing the public at large ofthe advantages that would arise from ornamenting cathedrals and churches with the productions of the pencil ; pro ductions which might be useful in their effect, and at the same time not likely to give offence in a Protestant country. The idea was therefore started, that if the members should ornament this chapel, the example might thus afford an opening for the introduction of tbe art into other places of a similar nature ; and which, as it was then stated, would not only present a new and noble scene of action, that might become highly ornamental to the kingdom, but would be, in some measure, ab solutely necessary for the future 4abour ofthe nu merous students educated under the auspices of the Royal Academy. All the members were struck with the propriety, and even with the probability of success which attended the scheme; but Sir Joshua Reynolds, in particular, immediately took it up. on a bolder plan, and offered an amendment, saying, that in stead of the chapel, they should fly at once at higher game, and undertake St. Paul's Cathedral. The grandeur and magnificent liberality of this idea immediately gained the suffrages and plaudits of all present, and the President was empoweeed to make the proper application to the Dean and Chapter ; an application which was immediately acceded to on their part. At that time Dr. New ton, Bishop of Bristol, was the dean of St. Paul's, 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 307 and he was a strong advocate in favour of this schenie. A meeting of the Academy then took place, when six artists were chosen for the attempt ; these were Sir Joshua Reynolds, Mr. West the present president, Barry, Dance, Cipriani and An gelica Kauffman. 'The Society for the Encduragerhent of Arts and Manufactures also took up the business, ahd added fonr artists to the original number. The subject, which Sir Joshua proposed to exe cute, was that of the Virgin and Christ in tbe Manger, or Nativity j' but the whole plan was set aside in consequence of Dr. Terrick, then Bishop of London, having refused his consent. This has been noticed by Barry, in one of his letters, when he says, " Sir Joshua Reynolds, who had undertaken the management of this bu siness, informed us last Monday, the day after his return from Plympton, where he was chosen mayor, that the Archbishop of Canterbury and Bishop of London had never given any consent to. it, and that all thoughts about it must conse quently drop." On a subject so important as the improvement of our national buildings, there can be nothing superfluous in adding? the following accbunt ofthe origin of this scheme for decorating the cathedral of St. Paul's with paintings by living artists', which' was thus related to me as authentic. x 2 SOS LIFE OF [-ETAT. 49. " Dr. Newton, late bishop of Bristol, and dean of St. Paul's, was an enthusiastic admirer and lover ofthe arts, and also a great friend to artists. One day, Sir Joshua Reynolds and Mr. West were dining with him at his house, and, in the course of conversation, one of them observed how great an ornament it would be to that cathedral if it were to be furnished with appropriate paintings to fill up those large vacant compartments and pan- nels, and which the architect, Sir Christopher Wren himself, had purposed to. have added to finish the building. On this, Mr. West generously, offered .to give a picture of his own painting, and Sir Joshua cheerfully agreed to follow his example, in order to make a beginning. Mr. West proposed, to paint the subject of Moses with the Laws ; and Sir Joshua offered a Nativity. The bishop was enraptured with the plan ; and he, being dean of St. Paul's, concluded that his influence was fully sufficient to produce a completion of the business. " The guardians of the cathedral are the King, the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Bishop of Lon don, arid the Dean and Chapter pf St. Paul's, and the Lord-mayor of London, for the time being. " The good Dr. Newton first went to the King, whose ready and hearty consent was immediately. given, as were likewise those of the archbishop, and also of the lord mayor ; and the chapter, with the dean at their head, of course had no objection. But unluckily, the very person who possessed most 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 309 power in that church, was the last consulted on the business ; that was Dr. Terrick, then bishop of London : and when Dr. Newton paid him a visit to inform him ofthe hopeful progress he had made, and to receive his consent, the old bishop patiently .heard him to the end of his speech, when, assuming a very grave countenance, he re plied, " My good Lord Bishop of Bristol, I have already been distantly and imperfectly informed of such an affair having been in contemplation ; but as the sole power at last remains with myself, I therefore inform your lordship, that whilst I live and have the power, I will never suffer the doors of the metropolitan church to be opened for the introduction of popery into it."* * It is but justice to the memory of the learned prelate ta give the following, which is Bishop Newton's own account ofthe design of ornamenting St. Paul's cathedral, of which church he was dean and a great friend to the project : but it is observable, that the bishop says nothing of the Society for the Encourage ment of Arts. " As he, the bishop, was known to be such a lover of their art, the Royal Academy of Painters, in 1773, made an applica tion to him by their worthy president, Sir Joshua Reynolds, re presenting, that the art of painting, notwithstanding the present encouragement given to it in England, would never grow up to maturity and perfection, unless it could be introduced into churches as in foreign countries ; individuals being, for the most part, fonder of their own portraits, and those of their families, than of any historical pieces: that, to make a beginning, the royal academicians offered their services to the dean and chapter to decorate St. Paul's with scripture histories, and six of their members, Sir Joshua Reynolds, Mr. West, Angelica Kauffman, 310 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 49. " Dr. Newton was much mortified, at the re fusal, and reflected upon himself as having de- Cipriani, Mr. Barry, and, I think, Mr. Dance, had been chosen to paint each a picture for this purpose ; that these pictures should be seen, examined, and approved by the academy before they were offered to the dean and chapter, and< tbe dean and chapter might then give directions for alterations and amend ments, and receive or refuse them as they thought them worthy or unworthy of the places for which they were designed,: none should be put up but such as were entirely approved, and they should all be put up at the charge of the academy, without any expense to the members of the church. St. Paul's had, all along, wanted some such ornaments, for rich and beautiful as it is with out, it is too plain and unadorned within. " Sir James Thornhill had painted tbe history of St. Paul in the cupola, (he worst part of the church that could have been painted ; for the pictures there are most exposed to the changes of the weather, suffer greatly from damp and heat, and, let what will be done to prevent it, it is to be feared, must, in no very long time, all decay and perish, lt was happy, therefore, that Sir James's eight original sketches and designs, which were higher finished than usual, in order (o be carried and shewn to Queen Anne, were purchased of his family at the recommenda tion of the dean, in the year 1779, and are hung up in the great room at the Chapter House. Besides the exposition of these pictures to the weather, in the cupola, they are at such a height, that they cannot convenitntly be seen from any part, and add little to the beauty and ornament ofthe church. They had bet ter have been placed below, for below they would have been seen ; and there are compartments which were originally designed for bas-reliefs, or such like decorations; but the parliament, a;; it is said, having taken part of the fabric money, and applied it to King William's wars, Sir Christopher Wren complained that his. wings were clipt, and the church was deprived of its orna ments. Here, then, a fair opportunity was offered for retrieving the loss and supplying former defect. It was certainly a most generous and noble, offer on the part of the academicians, and 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 311 stroyed the project by his indiscreet manage ment,; in not having made his first application to the offended Bishop of London." the public ought to think themselves greatly obliged to them for it. The dean and chapter were all equally pleased with it ; and the dean, in the fullness of his heart, went to communicate it to the great patron of arts, and readily obtained his royal consent and approbation. But the trustees of the fabric, the Arch bishop of Canterbury and the Bishop of London, were also to be consulted, and they disapproved ofthe measure. Bishop Terrick, both as trustee of the fabric, and as bishop of the diocese, stre nuously opposed it : whether he took it amiss, that the proposal was not first made to him, and by him the intelligence con veyed to his Majesty ; or whether he was really afraid, as he said, that it would occasion a great noise and clamour against it, as an artful introduction of popery. Whatever were his reasons, it must be acknowledged that some other serious persons disap proved the setting up of pictures in churches. It was in truth not an object of that concern, as to run the risk of a general out cry and clamour against it; but the general opinion plainly ap peared to be on the contrary side much in favour of the scheme: and, whatever might have been the case in the days of our first reformers, there was surely no danger now of pictures seducing our people into popery and idolatry ; — they would only make scrip ture history better known and remembered. Many other churches and chapels have adopted, and are adopting, this measure, as Rochester, Winchester, Salisbury, St. Stephen's Walbrook, and several colleges in the universities. The House of Commons have given a rich painted window to their church of St. Mar garet's, Westminster. Bishop Terrick himself approved, if not contributed, to the setting up of a picture of the Annunciation, by Cipriani, in the chapel of his own college at Clare Hall, at Cam bridge:— and why should such ornament's be denied to the ca pital church in the kingdom ? The dean, rather than the scheme should be totally laid aside, proposed to make a trial and experi ment how the thing would bear. Most churches and chapels, he observed, have something of ornament and decoration 312 LIFE OF [.-ETAT. 49. At that time all sculptures were also prohibited from that cathedral ; for Dr. Newton, the dean, about the communion table. ' You sometimes see, even in the country, Moses and Aaron upon a cburch wall, Holding up the Commandments for fear they should fall. But St. Paul's will not well admit of any ornament over the communion table, because it would darken the windows there, which give the principal light to the choir. But near to the communion table are two doors, one opening into the north and the other into the south aisle; and over these two doors are proper compartments for two pictures. It was therefore proposed by the dean, that Sir Joshua Reynolds and Mr. West should paint these two pictures; Mr. West's design being the giving of the two tables to Moses from the cloud of glory, the people all standing beneath ; and Sir Joshua's design being the infant Jesus lying in the manger, with the shepherds surrounding, and the light flowing all from the Child, as in the famous Notte of Corregio: here was the beginning both of the Law and of the Gospel ; here was nothing to encourage superstition or idolatry ; nothing that could possibly give any one any just offence. Let the trial only be made by these pictures ; and if they occasion any noise and clamour, then let an end be put to the whole affair ; if they are well received, and approved and applauded by the public, then let the other artists proceed. But reasonable as this pro position was generally thought to be, it was over-ruled by the same authority as the former; and whether the merits or de merits are greater' of those who favoured the design, or of those who defeated it, the. present age and impartial posterity roust judge. Sir Joshua has wrought up his design into a noble pic ture ; Mr. West exhibited his drawing at one of, the public ex hibitions of the Royal Academy. Mr. Barry has published an etching of his design, the Fall of the Angels, both excellent, both masterly performances ; and it is much to be wished that the other artists would follow their example." 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 313 who died soon after, left an injunction in his will, that a monument to his memory should be erected "Some time before this, another opportunity was unfortunately lost of decorating St. Paul's. When Bishop Newton was only one of the residentiaries, a statuary, of some note, came to him in his summer month of residence, desiring leave to set up a monument in St. Paul's for one who had formerly been a lord mayor and representative ofthe city of London. The dean, and his other brethren ofthe chapter, being in the country, he went to consult with Archbishop Seeker upon the subject ; and Arch bishop Seeker was so far from making any objection, that he much approved the design of monuments, saying what advantages foreign churches had over ours, and that St. Paul's was too naked and bare, for want of monuments, which would be a BToper or nament, and give a venerable air to the church, provided care was taken that there be nothing improper in their structure, or in the inscriptions upon them. But when the thing was pro posed to Bishop Osbaldeston, he was violent against it: Sir Christopher Wren had designed no such things ; there had been no monuments in all the time before he was bishop, and in his time there should be none. He was desired to look upon the print which hung over his head of the inner section of St. Paul's, wherein he would see that Sir Christopher Wren had designed monuments, especially in the recesses under the windows; but he was not to be convinced; churches, he said, were better with out monuments than with them. Since the bishop was so pe remptory, it was judged proper not to push the matter any far ther; especially since the person for whom the monument was desired was not one ofthe most illustrious characters, nor deserv ing to be the first instance of the kind. Few, I conceive, will agree in opinion with Bishop Osbaldeston, that churches are better without monuments than with them. The sense of man kind has been contrary in all ages and in all countries ; and it is really a wonder tbat no more applications have been made for erect ing monuments in St. Paul's. Westminster Abbey is too full of them. It may be said to be incrusted with monuments, and in some places they are ridiculously piled two stories high over 314 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 49. in that church if possible, which was to cost five hundred pounds, with the hope of introducing the arts into that cathedral : this was denied to the family, and his monument, executed by Banks the sculptor, and a very fine one, was then placed in St. Bride's church, of which Newton was the rector, according to his order, in case of a refusal of his first request. The following petition was intended to be pre sented to the King, in which is fully evinced the liberal intentions of those artists who first sug gested the scheme of making an offer to the pub lic, of much less advantage to themselves than to their successors, and which would give foreigners an idea that the arts were encouraged in tfye country. Thus the nation would have been par takers of an honour that belonged solely to these spirited individuals. one another. At St. Paul's there is ample room, and spaces designed for monuments : and what a magnificent and glorious church would it be with a proper intermixture of pictures and Statues, and what an ornament and honour to the metropolis and to the kingdom ! The great difficulty is to find a suitable person to begin with, of eminence and dignity sufficient to set an example to the rest. Several gentlemen were desirous of opening a public subscription for a monument to Mr. Pope in St. Paul's as had been done to Shakspeare in Westminster Abbey: but Mr. Pope's religion was some objection to this scheme. It was a better thought of erecting the first monument to Bishop Sherlock, whose father had been Dean, and himself Bishop of London so many years." — Bishop Netatton's Life and Anecdotes, prefixed to his Works, 1782, 4to. I. pp. 105— 109. 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. $\5 "TO THE KING'S MOST EXCELLENT MAJESTY: - " SIRE, " We, the Academicians of the Royal Aca demy beg leave to express our sentiments of con stant gratitude for the patriotic zeal with which your Majesty has protected the arts of design in these kingdoms, by the establishment ofthe Royal Academy, and by the continual support and countenance with which you have honored that institution. " Your Majesty, by your individual encourage ment of the arts of design, bas given an example to the world equally wise and princely in the magnificent biblical paintings with which you have decorated St. George's Hall,* and the Royal Chapel of Windsor: herein you have directed those arts to their true end — the cultivation of religion and virtue ; for it is by such means only that they have risen to perfection in Greece and Italy, and it is by these means only that they can rise to perfection in any other country. " As artists-^as lovers of virtue and our coun try, vve art-riously wjsh to see the truly royal ex ample which your Majesty has given, followed in the principal cfiurclt of these kingdoms, St. Paul's cathedral, according to the intention of its archi tect, Sir Christopher Wren : and, instead of the present unfinished state of its inside, vve wish to * Alluding to the pictures painted by Mr. West, by order of the King, but not yet put up in the chapel. 316 LIFE OF r : [.ETAT. 49- see ti decorated in a manner suitable to the beauty and dignity of its external architecture. " Therefore, the historical painters in your Royal Academy, convinced of the advantage' which would arise to the arts, and the country^ in every point of view, from such an undertaking, are de sirous to engage in the decoration of this noble building, with paintings from the Bible, in the most liberal manner ;' for they conceive that the very small compensation with which their love for their art would induce them to* be satisfied^ might easily be raised by keeping open the annual exhibition of the Royal Academy a fortnight longer than usual, for two or three years ; or by an allowance for a certain time from the additional price, which the exhibition of such works would bring to the cathedral; or by any other means that your Majesty's wisdom may condescend to sug gest. " As the arts of design owe their present pro sperity, in these kingdoms, to your Majesty's pa ternal care, so we are tempted to look up to your gracious protection for the commencement of the intended work, in obtaining the consent of the dean and chapter for that purpose, and for any other preparatory measures, which, in your Ma jesty's wisdom, may seem needful." (Signed) In this year also it was, that the Literary Club, which owed its origin, in a great measure, to Sir 1773.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 317 Joshua, was enlarged by the addition of two va luable members ; the late Earl of Charlemont, and David Garrick : after which some others were ad mitted to this select circle of friends, soon after which, a dinner of singular kind of accommodation was given by Mr. Thrale. at his brewery, to Sir Joshua, Johnson, Goldsmith, Garrick, Edmund Burke, Baretti, and others, who dined on beef steaks broiled on the coppers, seated in a newly madeip.rewi'ngtvessel, sufficiently capacious to con tain the company conveniently. jSo much was Sir Joshua now admired and es teemed, that his acquaintance was considered as an honour, and his name as a passport; and the latter was eagerly, sought after even by those who wished to introduce the efforts of literature to the world. A very handsome compliment was paid to him at this-; period, by the editor of Richardson's " Theory, of ^Painting," who dedicated this work to the President. " SIR, ' ••" ' " A new and improved edition ofthe works of Jonathan Richardson cannot be inscribed with so much propriety to any body, as to you. The author has, in his "Theory of Painting," dis coursed with great judgement on the excellencies of this divine art, and recommended the study of it with a warmth approaching to enthusiasm. His 31 S LIFE OF [.ETAT. 50. ideas are noble, and his observation learned. I am emboldened to say this, from a conversation Which I had the honour to have with you on this subject. " Had Richardson lived to see the inimitable productions of your pencil, he would have con gratulated his country 0*1 the prospect of a School 6f Painting likely to contend successfully with those of Italy. " At the same time, be would have confessed, that your admirable discourses would have ren dered his own writings less necessary. " I am, with the greatest respect," &c, &c. 1774. -ETAT. 50. In the early part of 1774. a resolution was en tered into by the Society of Arts, that a series of Historical or Allegorical pictures should be painted by the first artists in the kingdom, to decorate their new room in the Adelphi. The plan proposed was, that there should be eight historical and two allegorical ; tbe subjects ofthe former to be taken from the British Annals. It was also proposed, that the profits arising from the exhibition of those works, for a limited time, should be appropriated to the rem u.iaera tion of the artists employed. The historical painters chosen were Sir Joshua Reynolds, Angelica Kauffman, 1774.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 319 Mess. West, Cipriani, Barry, Wright, Mortimer, and Dance ; whilst the allegorical designs were to have been executed by Penny and Romney. Sir Joshua, however, after some deliberation, thought proper to decline the proposal ; and the rooms have been since decorated, as is well known, by Barry alone. This latter artist had now been returned some (ime from Italy, and notwithstanding the friendship always expressed and shewn towards him by Sir Joshua, he seems to have been actuated in his con duct towards him, in several instances, by a capri cious ill will, for which Sir Joshua never gave him any cause, blit which may, perhaps, have arisen frond a petty jealousy at Sir Joshua's having painted a portrait of Burke for his friend Mr. Thrale. This dispute, for such it Was at least on the part of Barry, has been noticed by Barry's biogra pher; and though 1 cannot agree with him in part of his observations, yet I shall here give the whole passage as explanatory of the occurrence. In the life prefixed to his works, it is said, that " it may be necessary to premise, that about this time a kind of ill-humour had possessed Barry, in consequence ofthe extreme intimacy of the Burkes with Sir Joshua Reynolds, which led him to sup pose that those friends overlooked his merits to aggrandize Sir Joshua's. There might be (for those things are common to frail human nature) some envy entertained by Barry towards Sir Joshua* '320 LIFE OF [_ETAT. 50. for his respectable connections and his splendid mode of entertaining them, and, perhaps, some little jealousy in the mild Sir Joshua towards him, for a reputation that was rising to eclipse or out run hisown." "Whatever might be the cause, we see Barry standing upon a point of silly etiquette with the man of all others in the world the most honoured and loved, and in a way to endanger the imputa tion of ingratitude, had it not been for the dignified moderation displayed by Mr. Burke on the occa sion." This is an allusion to a very curious Correspon dence which took place at this period between Burke and Barry, respecting the neglect ofthe latter in executing a portrait of his -patron. The correspondence is preserved in Barry's works ; and I am of opinion, that whoever reads, it, will agree with me, that there was no necessity for accusing Sir Joshua of feeling jealousy at Barry's rising fame, when Barry's own conduct, arising from the waywardness of his own disposition, will easily account for his feeling irritation respecting Sir Joshua. Indeed his biographer's own confession, of his envious sensations, is enough to preclude 'the ne cessity of seeking for any other cause ; and, I trust, that the numerous instances which I shall yet have occasion to produce of Sir Joshua's profes sional suavity and. feelings, both in theory and 1774.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 321 in practice, will do away any impression which the foregoing passage might have excited to his prejudice. On the 22d of February in this year, Sir Joshua Reynolds wrote the following letter to Dr. Beat- tie, which I adduce as a fair specimen of his epis tolary powers : " I sit down to relieve my mind from great anxiety and uneasiness, and I am sorry when I say that this proceeds from not answering your letter sooner. This seems very strange, you will say, since the cause may be so easily removed ; but the truth of the matter is, I waited to be able to inform you that your picture was finished, which, however, I cannot now do. " I must confess to you, that when I sat down, I did intend to tell a sort of a white lie, that it was finished ; but on recollecting that I was writing to the author of truth, about a picture of truth, I felt that I ought to say nothing but the truth. The truth then is, that the picture probably will be finished before you receive this letter ; for there is not above a day's work remaining to be done. " Mr. Hume has heard from somebody that /tt? is introduced in the picture not much to his credit; there is only a figure covering his face with his hands, which they may call ' Hume,' or any body else ; it is true it has a tolerable broad back. As for Voltaire, I intended he should be one of the group. VOL. I. Y 322 LIFE OF [.ETAT, 50. " I intended to write more, but J hear the post man's bell. Dr. Johnson, who is with me now, desires his compliments." This unfortunate picture, which seems dopmed to have excited mistaken displeasure, was exhi bited in the year 1774 ; and Mrs. Montague says of it, in a letter to Beattie, " Your portrait is in the exhibition ; it is very like, and the piece worthy ofthe pencil of Sir Joshua." Some others, how-: ever, were not so pleased with it as the lady seemed to be ; for Beattie himself, in a letter written to her on the 27th of May. in that year, observes, " Mr. Mason seems now to be tolerably reconciled to the subscription, but he has foupd a new subject of concern, in this allegorical picture by Sir Joshua Reynolds, which he thinks can hardly fail to hurt my character in good earnest. I know not certainly in what light Mv. Mason considers this picture ; but so far as I have yet heard, he is singular in his opinion. " If Mr. Gray had done me the honour to ad dress an ode to me, and speak in high termB of ray attack on the sceptics, my enemies might have blamed him for his partiality, and the world might have thought that he had employed his muse in too mean an office ; but would any body have blamed me? If Sir Joshua Reynolds thinks more favorably of me than 1 deserye, (which he cer tainly does,) and if he entertains the same favour able sentiments of my cause, which I wish hini 1774.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 323 and all the world to entertain, I should be glad to know from Mr. Mason, what there is in all this to fix any blame on my character ? Indeed if J had planned this picture, and urged Sir Joshua to paint it, and paid him for his trouble, and then have so licited admittance for it into the Exhibition, then the world would have had good reason to exclaim against me as a vain coxcomb ; but I am per suaded, that nobody will ever suspect me of this, for nobody can do so, without first supposing that I am a fool." I have already recorded much criticism, and some censure, respecting the emblematical por trait of Beattie, but it would be the height of in justice to accuse Dr. Beattie of the least blame in respect to the composition of this picture; as the head alone was the only part of it that was finished when the Doctor left London, and returned to Scotland : nor was he consulted by, or had the least knowledge of Sir Joshua's intention till the picture was completely finished ; and as it was the design of Reynolds to make a present of this pic ture to the Doctor, there was the more propriety in not consulting him upon it, for he thus proposed to pay him a high and elegant compliment on his book on the Immutability of Truth. Neither could the Doctor, afterwards, when he saw it, with any kind of decorum, make objections to this va luable present, given to him as a special token of friendship: and, indeed, after all, it must be Y 2 324 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 50. clearly perceived, that the whole of the clamour raised about this portrait was the sole produce of envy and ignorance. The hint for the composition of this memorable picture (as I have been informed) Sir Joshua re ceived from a fine picture by Tintoretto, of a sub ject somewhat similar, which is in the King's library at Buckingham House. As to the por trait of Voltaire, that Sir Joshua certainly intended to represent in the group, for I well remember, at the time, his having a medal of him, from which he copied the likeness. But as to Hume, I am as certain that he never intended to place him in the picture, nor is there any such resemblance, or the least reason to suppose that the painter thought of him at the time. We see in the above instance how easily envy can swell a mole-hill to a moun tain. Of this subject, however, I presume my readers will think I have given them enough ; I shall, therefore, revert to another friend of Sir Joshua's, poor Goldsmith, who left this world on the 4th of April, 1774; the first too of those on whom the epitaphs had been so playfully written, as I have before alluded to in another place. Just before his death, he had nearly completed a design for the execution of an " Universal Dic tionary of the Arts and Sciences." Of this he had published the Prospectus, or, at least, had distributed copies of it amongst his friends and 1774.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 325 acquaintances. It did not meet with any warm encouragement, however, from the booksellers, although Sir Joshua Reynolds, Johnson, Garrick, and several others of his literary connections had promised him their assistance on various subjects : and the design was, I believe, entirely given up even previous to his demise.* Sir Joshua was much affected by the death of Goldsmith, to whom he had been a very sincere friend. He did not touch the pencil for that day, > a circumstance most extraordinary for him, who passed no day without a line. He acted as ex ecutor, and managed in the best manner, the con fused state of the Doctor's affairs. At first he in tended to have made a grand funeral for him, as sisted by several subscriptions to that intent, and to have buried him in the Abbey ; his pall. bearers to have been Lord Shelburne, Lord Louth, Sir Joshua himself, Burke, Garrick, &c. ; but, on se cond thoughts, he resolved to have him buried in the plainest and most private manner possible, ob serving that the most pompous funerals are soon past and forgotten ; and that it would be much more prudent to apply what money could be pro cured, to the purpose of a more substantial and * I have often heard him complain of the treatment he met with from the booksellers of his time, and the uncivil manner with which they paid him money ; but probably this was pro duced by his own conduct towards them. 326 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 50. more lasting memorial of his departed friend, by a monument ; and he was accordingly, privately in terred in the Temple busing-ground. Sir Joshua went himself to Westminster Abbey, and fixed upon tbe place where Goldsmith's mo nument now stands, over a door in the Poets' Corner. He thought himself lucky in being able to find so conspicuous a situation for it, as there scarcely remained another so good. Nollekens, the sculptor, was employed to make the monument, and Dr. Johnson composed the epitaph. There is a very fine portrait, which is the only original one, of Dr. Goldsmith, now at Knowle, the seat of the late Duke of Dorset, painted by Sir Joshua. I remember Miss Reynolds said of this portrait, that it was a very great likeness of the Doctor ; but the most flattered picture she ever knew her brother to have painted. A lady, who was a great friend of Dr. Gold smith, earnestly desired to have a lock of his hair to keep as a memorial of him ; and his coffin was opened again, after it had been closed up, to pro cure this lock of hair from his head : this relick is still in the possession of the family, and is the only one of the kind which has been preserved of the Doctor. To the record of poor Goldsmith's death, I may add one or two anecdotes not generally known. 1774.] sir joshua Reynolds. 327 I have been infortfled by the lady who requested a lock of his hair before interment, that he once read to her several chapters of a novel in manu script which he had in contemplation ; but which he did not live to finish, now irrecoverably lost. The same person has also some of his poetry, never yet published. An observation of Dr. Beattie, respecting the deceased poet, in a letter to Mrs. Montague, must not be passed over. " I am sorry for poor Gold smith. There were some things in his temper which I did not like ; but I liked many things in his genius ; and I was sorry to find, last summer* that he looked upon me as a person who seemed to stand between him and bis interest. However, when next we meet, all this will be forgotten, and the jealousy of authors, which, Dr. Gregory used to say, was next to that of physicians, will be no more. " Soon after Goldsmith's death, certain persons dining with Sir Joshua were commenting rather freely on some part of his works, which, in their opinion, neither discovered talent nor originality. To this, Dr. Johnson listened, in his usual growl ing manner, for some time ; when, at length, his patience being exhausted, he rose, with great dignity, looked them full in the face, and ex claimed, " If nobody was suffered to abuse poor Goldy, but those who could write as well, he would have few censors." 328 LIFE OF [_ETAT. 50. Yet, on another occasion, soon after the death of Goldsmith, a lady* of his acquaintance was condoling with Dr. Johnson on their loss, saying, " Poor Dr. Goldsmith ! I am exceedingly sorry for him; he was every man's friend !" " No, Madam," answered Johnson. " he was no man's friend !" In this seemingly harsh sentence, however, he merely alluded to the careless and imprudent con duct of Goldsmith, as being no friend even to him self, and when that is the case a man is rendered incapable of being of any essential service to any one else. It has been generally circulated, and believed by many, that Goldsmith was a mere fool in con versation ; but, in truth, this has been greatly ex aggerated by such as were really fools. In allu sion to this notion Mr. Horace. Walpole, who ad mired his writings, said he was " an inspired ideot," and Garrick described him as one, -for shortness call'd Noll, Who wrote like an angel, but talk'd like poor Poll." Sir Joshua Reynolds mentioned to Boswell that he frequently had heard Goldsmith talk warmly ofthe pleasure of being liked, and observe how hard it would be if literary excellence should preclude a man from that satisfaction, which he perceived it often did, from the envy which attended it ; ^nd * Miss Frances, Reynolds. 1774.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 329 therefore Sir Joshua was convinced, that he was intentionally more absurd, in order to lessen him self in social intercourse, trusting that his charac ter would be sufficiently supported by his works. If it was his intention to appear absurd in com pany, he was often very successful. This, in my own opinion, was really the case; and I think Sir Joshua was so sensible ofthe advantage of it, that he. yet in a much less degree, followed the same idea, as he never had a wish to impress his com pany with any awe of the great abilities with which he was endowed, especially when in the so ciety of those high in rank. Yet it is a fact that a certain nobleman, an inti mate friend of Reynolds, bad strangely conceived in his mind such a formidable idea of all those persons who had gained great fame as literary cha racters, that I have heard Sir Joshua say, he verily believed he could no more have prevailed upon this noble person to dme at the same table with Johnson and Goldsmith, than with two tygers. And again, that he has frequently seen the whole company struck with an awful silence at the entrance of Goldsmith, but that Goldsmith has quickly dispelled the charm, by his boyish and social manners, and be then has soon become the plaything and favorite ofthe company. Probably Goldsmith was not much mortified at sometimes appearing little in the eyes of those who he knew were his inferiors, as he might con- 330 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 50. sole himself that he was able to make them feel his superiority whenever he pleased. Goldsmith, indeed, may serve as an instance td shew how capriciously nature deals out her gifts to mankind ; thus frequently bestowing, on the same individual, qualities which the wisest must admire, accompanied by those which the weake.lt may despise. His epitaph in Westminster Abbey, written by Dr. JohnSOD, is a true character of the eccentric poet. Among the various tributes to his memory, was one by Courtney Melmoth, (Mr. Pratt, I believe,) dedicated to Sir Joshua, "• who will naturally re- receive with kindness whatever is designed as a testimony of justice to a friend that is no more." In this, the dedicator has well attempted to pour- tray the feelings of Sir Joshua's heart. In the Dedication of his " Deserted Village" to Sir Joshua Reynolds, already noticed, Goldsmith alludes to the death of his eldest brother, Henry, the clergyman ; and his various biographers record another, Maurice, who was a younger brother, and of whom it is stated, by Bishop Percy, that having been bred to no business, he, upon some occasion, complained to Oliver that he found it difficult to live like a gentleman. To this Oliver wrote him an answer, begging that he would, without delay, quit so unprofitable a trade, and betake himself to some handicraft employment. Mauricie, wisely, 1774.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 331 as the Bishop adds, took the hint, and bound him self apprentice to a cabinet-maker, and when out of his indentures set up in" business for himself. in which he was engaged during the viceroyalty of the late Duke of Rutland; and his shop being in Dublin, he was noticed by Mr. Orde, since Lord Bolton,, the Lord Lieutenant's Secretary, who re commended him to the patronage of the Duke, out of regard to the memory of his brother. In consequence of this, he received the appoint ment of inspector of licences in that metropolis, and was also employed as mace bearer, by the Royal Irish Academy, then just established. Both of these places were compatible with his business: and in the former he gave proof of great integrity by detecting a fraud committed on the revenue in his department ; and one by which he himself might have profited, if he had not been a man of principle. He has now been dead not more than fifteen years ; I enter more particularly into his history, from having seen the following passage in one of Oliver's letters to him : " You talked of being my only brother — I don't understand you. Where is Charles?" This, indeed, was a question which Maurice could not answer then, nor for many years after wards ; but as the anecdote is curious, and I have it from a friend on whose authority I can rely, I shall give it a place here nearly in his own words. My friend informed me, that whilst travelling in LIFE OF [.ETAT. 50; the stage coach towards Ireland, in the autumn of L791, he was joined at Oswestry by a venerable looking gentleman, who, in the course of the morning, mentioned that his name was Goldsmith; when one of the party observed, that if he was going to Ireland, that name would be a passport for him. The stranger smiled, and asked the rea son why ? to which the other replied, that the memory of Oliver was embalmed amongst his countrymen. A tear glistened in the stranger's eye, who immediately answered, " I am his bro ther." The gentleman who had first made the observation on the name, looked doubtingly, and said, " He has but one brother living ; I know him well." " True," replied the stranger, " for it may be said that I am risen from the dead, having been for many years supposed to be no longer in the land ofthe living. I am Charles the youngest of the family. Oliver I know is dead ; but of Henry and Maurice I know nothing." On being informed of various particulars of his family, the stranger then told his simple tale; which was, that having heard of his brother Noll mixing in the first society in London, he took it for granted that his fortune was made, and that he could soon make a brother's also : he therefore left home without notice ; but soon found, on his arrival in London, that the picture he had formed of his brother's situation was too highly coloured ; that Noll would not introduce him to his great .1774.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 323 •friends, and, in fact, that, although out of a jail, he was also often out of a lodging. • •; Disgusted with this entrance into high life, and .'ashamed to return home, the young man left Lon- ;don without acquainting his brother with his in dentions, or even writing to his friends in Ireland; , and proceeded, a poor adventurer, to Jamaica, "where he lived, for many years, without ever re newing an intercourse with his friends, and by ' whom he was, of course, supposed to be dead; though Oliver may, at first, have imagined that • .he .had returned to Ireland. Years now passed '".Wil,' and young Charles, by industry and persever- ." ance, began to save some property ; soon after which he married a young lady of some fortune, when his children requiring the advantages of ¦ further education, he determined to return to .'¦ England, to examine into the state of society, and "ji-ito the propriety of bringing over his wife and 1-i-lkiXrHy : on this project he was then engaged, and . "was proceeding to Ireland to visit his native home, I'Vred with the intention of making himself known ¦"'•' to;such of his relatives as might still be living.' <;.Hfs plan, however, was to conceal his good for etime until he should ascertain their affection and '.esteem for him. '¦.'¦ On arriving at Dublin, the party separated ; and my friend, a few weeks afterwards, returning from •': .the north, called at the hotel where he knew Mr. Goldsmith intended to" reside. There he met 334 LIFE OF £.ETAT. 50. him; when the amiable old man, for such he really was, told him that he had put his plan in execution ; had given himself as much of the ap pearance of poverty as he could with propriety, and thus proceeded to the shop of his brother Maurice, where he inquired for several articles,, . and then noticed the name over the door, asking if it had any connection with the famous Dr. Gold smith. " I am his brother-r— his sole surviving brother," said Maurice. " What, then," replied the stranger, " is be come ofthe others ?" / " Henry has long been dead ; and poor Charles has not been beard of for many years." " But suppose Charles were alive," said the stranger — " would his friends acknowledge him ?" " Oh yes !" replied Maurice, "gladly indeed!" " He lives, then ; but as poor as when he left .. you." Maurice instantly leaped over his counter, hug'- ged him in his- arms, and, weeping with pleasure, cried, " Welcomes-welcome ! here you shall find a home and a hrother !" It is needless to add, that this denouement was perfectly agreeable to the stranger, who was then preparing to return to Jamaica to make his pro posed family arrangements ; but my friend, having been engaged, for the next twenty years, in travers ing the four quarters of the globe, being himself a 1774.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 335 wanderer, has never, since that period, had an op portunity of making inquiries into the welfare of the stranger ; for whom he had, indeed, conceived a great esteem, even on a few days' acquaintance.* Before I dismiss poor Goldsmith from the stage, it may be proper to notice another dedication to Sir Joshua, prefixed to that edition of his works published by Evans, in which he says-- " SIR, " I am happy in having your permission to inscribe to you this complete edition of the truly poetical works of your late ingenious friend, Oliver Goldsmith. They will prove a lasting monument of his genius. Every lover of science must deeply lament, that this excellent writer, after long strug gling with adversity, finished his mortal career j\ist as his reputation was firmly established, aud he had acquired the friendship of Sir Joshua Rey-? nolds, Dr. Johnson, Mr. Edmund Burke, the Dean pf Derry, Mr. Beauclerk, and Mr. Cumberland, — names which adorn our age and nation. It is, Sir, being merely an echo of the public voice, to celebrate your admirable productions, " •' In which, to latest time, the artist lives.' * I hare since been informed, that this Mr. Charles Goldsmith brought his wife and family to England soon after, and resided in Somers' Town in much, respectability. He has now been dead some years. 336 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 50. " Had Dr. Goldsmith understood the art of paint ing, of which he modestly declares himself igno rant, his pen would have done justice to the merits of your pencil. He chose a nobler theme, by declaring his ardent affection for the virtues of your heart. That you may long continue, Sir, the ornament of your country and the delight of your friends, is the sincere wish of yOur most obliged humble servant, T. Evans." In closing the year 1774, it is necessary to take a short view of Reynolds' sixth discourse, which was delivered on the 10th of December. It is to be observed in this place, that One year had elapsed without his having given a discourse, which was the first omission since its commence ment ; but as these orations were only given on the evenings when the gold medals were presented to successful candidates as the prize, it had been previously determined in the last year, that as ge nius was not of quick growth it would be fully sufficient to bestow the prizes in future only once in two years, and this rule has since been regularly followed. In this discourse, he took a view of the best principles in that part of a painter's art, called " Imitation ;" and, after shewing where genius commences, and where it finds a limit, he proved that invention was acquired by being conversant with the inventions of others. To this he sub- 1774.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 337 joined some rules for allowable imitation, marked the legal extent of borrowing, and pointed out what might fairly be collected from each specific school of the art. As this discourse, however, was more of pro fessional than of general import, I shall not dis- , cuss it at any length, but shall merely insert two or three passages, which strongly mark the originality of his own genius, and Thay be said almost to dis prove the truth of his position, that Invention and Genius are the children, or at least the pupils, of Imitation. "Genius is supposed to be a power of produc ing excellencies which are out ofthe rules of art; a power which no precepts can teach, and which no industry can acquire." — " But the truth is, that the degree of excellence which proclaims Genius is different, in different times and places;* and what shows it to be so is, that mankind have often changed their opinion upon this matter." — " What we now call Genius begins, not where rules, abstractedly taken, end ; but where known vulgar and trite rules have no longer any place." — " Invention is one ofthe greatest marks of Ge nius ; but if we consult experience, we shall find * The man of genius draws his art from Inexhaustible nature, which gives it novelty and interest. The man of no genius draws his art from art ; bence it be» comes stale, vapid, and uninteresting. VOL. I. z *> 338 LIFE OF [.ETAT. 50. that it is by being' conversant with the invention of others, that we learn to invent; as, by reading the thoughts of others, we learn to think." — " Tho mind is but a barren soil ; a soil which is soon exhausted, and will produce no crop, or only one, unless it be continually fertilized and enriched with foreign matter." — Such were a few of the most striking general truths in this discourse ; but the fact ?is, that none of his discourses possess more beauties than this one, though, for the most part, strictly of a professional nature. One anecdote related in it shall close the subject. " I remember," said Sir Joshua, " several years ago, to have conversed at Rome with an artist of great fame throughout Europe : be was not with out a considerable degree of abilities; but these abilities were by no means equal to his own opi nion of them. " From tbe reputation he had acquired, he too fondly concluded, that he stood in the same rank, when compared with his predecessors, as he held with regard to his miserable contemporary rivals. In conversation about some particulars of the works of Raffaelle, he seemed to have, or to, affect to have, a very obscure memory of them. He told me that he had not set his foot in the Vatican for fifteen years together : that he had been in treaty to copy a capital picture of Raf faelle, but that the business had gone off; how- 1774.] SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 339 ever, if the agreement had held, his copy would have greatly exceeded the original ! " The merit of this artist, however great we may suppose it, I am sure would have been far greater, and his presumption would have been far less, if he had visited the Vatican, as in reason he ought to have done, at least once every month in his life." J. Gillet, Printer, Crown Court, Fleet Street, London. ERRATA. Volume. I. Page 36, for .STAT. 19, read .-ETAT. 37. 19, third line,,/*-??' maestr, read master. 209, first line, for rat read art- Si.), third line, for no read, nor. yolume IT, 48, sixth YiTic.for the ost read the most. 248, for Humphries read Humphry,