The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1803-05-12 00:00:00

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6031E2SET-HOUSE.

Ni. VI.
A public exhibition, to be extensivelyus-eful, should
be formed on the most liberal principles. -Party,
prejudice, and vanity, should never be admitted
into its councils—but its Committee of Managers
should be judgment, Liberal 4, Diurimination, and
Pure Tarte. These great and invaluable judges
should fairly and impartially examine the relative
claims of every candidate, and give to each his pro-
per reward. Arrogance and Ignorance would then
shrink from public exposure, and Genii's and Telent
would be fostered and rewarded. This should be
the charaEteristic of a national institution ; and this
should be the fundamental basis of the English
Royal Academy. But the present organization of
society forbids it ; and we fear that the passions and
prejudices of man will ever be insurmountable barri-
ers to its accomplishment. At the first association
of our Artists, a cab it arose, and opposition pro-
duced division. Some formed a new society, and
ele&ed Sir JOSfiU A REY MOLDS as President, who se-
ceded from the chair in consequence of contentions
and animosities that arose among the members. He
was succeeded by Mr. WF.ST, in 17!:2, who has ex-
perienced much embarrassment in the endeavour to
preserve karma, in the composition of such heteroge-
neous parts as constitute the present Academy. But
to contemplate, or animadvert on these subjek%, is
extremely unpleasant and distressing, e..pecially to
our feelings. Zealot's in the cause or the polite arts,
and solicitous for their success and exaltation, we
wish to see unanimity and laudable competition pre-
vail among its professors. Influenced by this senti-
ment, we shall gladly seize every opportunity to
praise the deserving and meritorious Artist, and at
the same time give some advice to such who may
be misled by erroneous principles. l'here are some
persons so completely bigotted to false systems, and
so regardless of public admonition and censure, that
they persist in improprietit.. and absurdities, though
in opposition to universal opinion. If this kind of
conduit only operated on the active agent, we should
be regardless of his fate ; but when it may tend to
vitiate public taste, we are imperiously called on to
oppose its effeEls. Thus when Authors and Art-
ists declare open war against Nature and Truth, and
continually assail these 'worthy champions with

" Gurgons, lls dras and Cli imxra4 dire,"
it becomes the duty of every Citizen of the World to
volunteer in their defence. We therefore avail our-
selves of a fellow-soldier's armour, and dare ad-
vance against "the bravest of all the Greeks," be-
cause he has not only murd, red his antagonist, but
sadly wounded modesty and moderation.
No. 97. "Thee t and Aurora, the Mothers of Achil-
les and Memnon the Ethiopian, presented themselves be-
fore the throne of Jupiter, each to beg the life of her Son,
who was proceeding to single com!at. Jupiter decided
in favour of Achilles, and Memnon fell.--The subjea
is from Ascavi.us."—H. Fuscti, It. A.—" Be-
fore we proceed to the investigation of the works of
this Artist, we are disposed to put nature entirely
out of the question, as he seems to be evermore
walking in Fairy Land; and, like Mr. MUNK L,avis,
if he be not unnatural, he is nothing ; at least, that
is our idea. In the disposition of the scene under
consideration, there is an affeaation of appearing
highly classical ; but it. is so managed, that we do
not think that any of the Pagan personages would
hold themselves ,nuch indebted to this inflated
Artist. It is certainly indecent to make Aeui Li.rs
expose his nakedness to the spe&stors, nor is it cmi-
neatly pious to give JUPITER the air of an old
cloathsman, ruminating upon the chances of profit
in an offered bargain. As to the essential point of
drawing, it is miserably imperfea. What the ana-
tomy of the Greeks might be, we will not say ; but
we will aver, that no muscular proportions of the
moderns are similar, either in origin or insertion, to
the ladies and gentlemen in this supernatural assem-
blage. A Charlatan observes, in a French farce, in
behalf of his own want of knowledge, that the hu-
man heart had changed sides since the praaice of
Hippocrates; and pei haps the other parts have un-
dergone a similar alteraiiun. Mr. Fesci.t appears
to have imbibed his ideas of historic composition
from the extravagance of GoLTZIUS. In the crea-
tion of monsters, that have no reference but to the
imagination, he is successful. His designs from the
Midsummer Night's Dream, and his Witches and Ca-
laws:, deserve our admiration ; and when he
" Gives to airy nothing
" A local habitation,"
he often delights the critic, and always the mob.
His colouring seems as inadequate to the illustration
of any thing. in nature in this pidure, as his draw-
ing ; all his tints are in a state of antipathy to har-
mony, excepting his management of the interposi-
tion of vapours, near the person of the Thunderc-r,
which is touched w;th some delicacy. As this Gen-
tleman is the Academic Professor of Painting, any
manifestation of a due want of skill in him, is to be
regretted ; inasmuch as :t equally belongs to his re-
putation to afford examples of the economy and ma-
nagement of the degrees of colour, as it is his
bounden duty to deliver correa documents to the dis-
ciples of the Academy. Mr. BAR RY, whom he
succeeded, was an Artist of colossal merit, and un-
usually illuminated ; and, when he was unhappily
compelled to recede from his station, the Council
should have thought nine times before they had no-
minated his successor."
(Te be eftairused )

On Monday last the Commissioners of Land Tax,
ailing for the Borough of Southwark, and the East
Half Hundred of Brixton, in Surrey, proceeded to
the eleCtion, by ballot, of Clerks to the Commission,
in the room of Jolts PARDON, Esq. deceased, and
Wii.xt*.aa PE ARSON, Esq. resigned; when Mr. Jons
DAY was unanimously elected Clerk to the Com-
missioners for the several duties payable in the Bo-
rough of Southwark ; and Messrs. CHARLES HUM-
PHRIES, T. W. MARSON, and BERIAH DREW, were
ele.t.ted Clerks for the three divisions of East Brixton,
Mr. CARTER losing his eleetion by a majority of two
(.nly out of eighty Commissioners who voted.
COTTON TRADE Or heel-Atm.—By papers now
laying on the table of the House of Commons, it
appears, that the duties paid on British tattoo geltiltp
and yarn, amounted to 5501. only, in the rear 1790.
That from that time time till the Unsun it averaged
about 30001. assually, but that since then it has
averaged 15,0001. and last year amounted to
21,7271. 9s. 6d. This is a great argument in
favour of the Union, as it affeds mansfadures in
that country.

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