The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1858-08-10 00:00:00

BLANDFORD.

The following appeared in the Illustraled Kew
of the 31st tilt :—" It is well that discussion should
be rained about the monument to the Duke of Wel-
lington before we are irrevocably committed to the
memorial unworthy of him and of England. But
we see nothing unpromising in the present state of
the matter. A young and unknown sculptor lime
been selected solely because his work is adjudged to
be one of genius, and he is to be assisted by gentle-
men of approved ability " The "young and un-
known sculptor" referred to is a native of this place,
and there are many now living here who were his
companions in boyhood, and who have not forgotten
the diffident manners and studious habits of the boy,
Alfred Stevens, thirty yearn since. His father was
the town artist, and never did "mine host" of the
Black Bear or King's Arms think of attracting the
traveller's attention by swinging sign-board without
George Stevens being called in to paint an Illustra-
tion of the brute or to emblazon the arms. His
shop, hung round with "bite" of ornamental writing
and heraldic specimens interspersed here and there
with performances by the brush belonging to a
higher range of art, was resorted to by the clinirch
warden who wanted the ten commandments " wrote
up" in the parish church, the undertaker for the
hateliment, and the sportsman for the portrait of his
horse or dog. Thus associated from childhood with
these art tendencies, it is not to lie wondered at that
the subject of our notice was early in life tempted to
handle the brush and to transfer to canvass the
iminatured fancies of a naturally imaginative mind.
His productions, however, rapidly assumed greater
merit and importance, and soon attracted the at-
tention of the Rev. J. Best, a judicious patron of
art living in the immediate neighbourhood. Through
his liberality "the boy artist" was sent to Italy, that
his taste and judgment might have a more correct
training than they were likely to receive at home.
There his genius first received a Idas iti favour of the
study of sculpture and architecture, and the brush
was frequently exchanged fir the modelling tool and
the severer study of architecture, order, detail, and
proportion. After an absence of several years he
returned to England, and though he has not at-
tempted to attain to eminence as a painter in this
country, he is not altogether " unknown" as a suc-
cessful competitor for fame in other departments of
art. He furnished designs to a manufacturing house at
Sheffield for ornamental chimneg-pieces and grates,
to which first prizes were awarded at the first exhibi-
tion in 18,51 ; and his valuable assistance in painting
the frescos in the House of Lords placed him in an
enviable position in the rank of English artists.
The beautiful vaulted ceiling, after Raffaelle, near the
Central Transept in the Italian Court at Sydenhain,
is the result of his genius, and attained for him the
highest commendations from Mr. Digby Wyatt and
other connoisseurs of artistic excellence.

MISAPPROPRIATION OP LOST PROPERTY. A
short time since a large package containing carpet-
ing and other valuable property, addressed to Mr.
Greathead, upholsterer, in this place, was dropped
from Evros' wagon engaged in conveying goods from
the Wimborne station to Blandford. The wives of
two men, named Gallop and Bead, living in the
village of Spettisbury, were seen by a navvie to
bring a truck to the place in the road where the
package had dropped and take it away. The luu
was known immediately the wagon arrived at
Blandbrd, and fro:n inquiries duly institutod in-
formation was quickly obtained of the manner in
which the package had been removed. The whole
of the property was found equally divided in the
two houses occupied by the women who had taken it
away from where it had fallen, and is now in the
possession of Superintendent Watts awaiting further
proceedings. We trust that this matter will be
fully gone into, as much valuable property is eon-
veyed by carriers on this line of road ; and a lesson
resit by the magistrates on the law of mum and team,
to the rural population living in the villages through
which the road passes, may not be thrown away.