The Sun.
London, England, 1867-08-20 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS,

have toiled, not unsuccessfully, to develope some
local knowledge of art in England through Schools
of Design. But even to them it may not be well
known that the man who sacrificed himself with
untiring energy to help others to achieve fame, and
to spread a knowledge of the principles of art, had
within himself the genius and the fire which
concentrated solely upon painting might have
placed his name beside those of the great French
artists whose names and whose works are perfectly
familiar to the English public.
Jean Hilaire Belloc came of an honourable mer-
chant stock, in the city which may be considered
as, port of the Loire. Ms father took part in-the
military struggles of the revolutionary times, on
the side of " the country" against the Royalists.
A certain delicacy of health, a decided talent for
art, prevented the boy from following the profes-
sion of arms ; and ho studied painting under Reg-
nault, Guerin, Gros, and Proudhon. In those
early days he had for a friend .and fellow student,
Gericault, whose undeveloped genius and career he
foresaw and prophesied. In 1810, M. Belloc exhi-
bited an historical painting, "The Death of Gaul,
Companion in Arms of Ossian." It was one of the
successes of that year, and gained the great gold
medal for the .youthful artist, then hardly twenty-
four years of age. In 1812, he exhibited several
portraits, and a picture entitled " A Lost Traveller
in an Egyptian Catacomb." The political changes
of 1814 and 1815 brought reverses of fortune and
family trouble which for some years compelled M.
Belloc to relinquish his beloved profession—years
which he numbered among the saddest of his life.
But, in 1823, he reappeared triumphant upon the
old arena, exhibiting several fine portraits. In
182 G, he produced a " St. John the Precursor ;"
in 1827, again, a series of portraits; in 1828, a
" Flight into Egypt ;" in 1829, an " Assumption,"
and also a portrait of the Duchesse de Berri.
In 1830, when the Revolution of July took France
by storm, M. Belloc was in mid-career, building
up that fame which to artists comes in middle life,
and occupied with numerous commissions, never,
alas ! destined to be executed ; for when politics
are disorganized and commerce suffers, the Arts—
the fairest and most delicate children of Civilization
—have but faint chance of a healthy existence.
And, moreover, the last picture exhibited by M.
Belloc having been the portrait of the Duchesse de
Berri, it may be imagined that his artistic connec-
tions were likely to be seriously injured by the
Bourbon downfall. It was, however, through the

DAILY NEWS.—Tbe long and elaborate judgmen
delivered by the Lord Chancellor, Lord Cranworth,
and Lord Colonsay in the case of Overend, Gurney,
and Co. (Limited), seemed to leave little to be de-
sired in the way of explanation. It is true, as we
have pointed out, that the Chancellor expressed an
unusually strong opinion as to the necessity of
shareholders ascertaining at the very earliest period
the contents of the Articles of Association. But
upon one point at least the three law lords were not
only strikingly unanimous, but most decided in their
opinion. The first question to be decided was
whether Mr. Oakes had been induced to take shares
in the new company by the fraudulent misrepresen-
tations of the directors. And the answer to this
question was answered in no hesitating manner.
The Lord Chancellor, after stating that at the time
when it was proposed to form the new company the
old partnership was insolvent, proceeded to quote
the prospectus, in which it was declared that the
goodwill was to be sold for £500,000, one half being
paid in cash and the remainder in shares, with £l5
per share credited thereon ; " terms," it was added,
"which in the opinion of the directors cannot fail
to insure a highly remunerative return to the share-
holders." Now, what does the Chancellor say of
the prospectus and of the conduct of those who
framed it It had been said that the facts stated
in the prospectus were literally true. Yes, replied
Lord Chelmsford, but it concealed material facts
which ought to have been made known, and " the
very concealment gave the truths which were told
the character of falsehood." It had been said that
if all the facts had been revealed not only would the
formation of a new company have been impossible,
but the old firm would have been inevitably ruined.
True, said Lord Chelmsford; but then no attempt
should have been made to form a new company,
because such an attempt was only possible by
coecealing facts which ought to have been made
known. It is true that the most damaging facts
were all set out in a deed, but this deed was care-
fully concealed from those who were to be enticed
to become shareholders, but who certainly never
would have become shareholders if the contents of
the cecret deed !lad been published. " The parties"
to the transaction, said the Chancellor, " some of
whom were both vendors and purchasers, arranged
among themselves for the payment of a sum for
this unmarketable good-will, the half of which must
have come out of the moneys of the shareholders."
It had been said that the directors really believed
that the company would be a profitable concern,
and upon the strength of that opinion they took
shares themselves, and never parted with them,
although at one time they were at a premium. True,
said Lord Chelmsford, but then each of the direc-
tors was compelled to have 200 shares as the quali-
fication of a director. " I entertain no doubt, how-
ever," he added, " that the directors were honestly
and sincerely of opinion that if they could procure
additional capital and could carry on some of the
business of Overend, Gurney, and Co. on a healthier
system, the company would succeed." But does
this amount to saying that the directors " were not
actuated by any dishonest motives ?" On the con-
trary, the Chancellor declared that as the desired
success could not be obtained without procuring
fresh capital, and as fresh capital could not be
obtained without " suppressing facts material to
be known," the attempt to form a new com-
pany should never have been made at all.
Nor does the Chancellor stand alone in this
opinion. Lord Cranworth said that the first
question in the case was the question of fact,
whether Mr. Oakes had been induced to take shares
in the new company by the fraud of the directors ?
It was unnecessary, indeed, to express any opi-
nion on this fact ; " but," said his lordship, "it
must, not be supposed that because I do not
investigate closely the question of fact, therefore I
doubt the soundness of the opinion expressed by my
noble and learned friend. For the honour of the
great mercantile community of the City of London
I wish 1 could have believed that the prospectus was
honestly and fairly framed. But I cannot. I must
believe that the truth was intentionally concealed,
and hopes held out by those who framed the pro-
spectus which deceived those who trusted to it.
There was both suggestio falsi and suppressio yeri."
Though the terms used by Lord Colonsay have not
been reported, still those who heard him can have
entertained no doubt that his condemnation of the
conduct of the directors in issuing the prospectus
was not less severe than that of his colleagues. It is
indeed a melancholy task to be obliged to recall the
strange perversities of those who, having plunged
into the quagmire of speculation, strove with all
the wildness of despair to regain the position they
abandoned. But if leading merchants in the City
of London will loud their names to induce the in -
nocent and the unwary to embark their fortunes in
ruinous ventures, it becomes the duty of those who
are called to sit in judgment upon such conduct to
visit it with just condemnation. Above all, it is the
duty of the press and the public not to gloss over
or to explain away the severity o. f the condemna
ides-
tion thus pronounced, but to give it the wt
circulation, and, if need be, to enforce the prin-
ciples upon which it rests. Amid the disasters of
the Crimean war and the break-down of our admi-
nistration, nothing excited so much admiration
abroad as the way in which the Parliament and
the people of England summoned the whole world,
as it were, to listen to the history of our blunders
and shortcomings. Amidst the commercial dis-
asters for which this country has of late been so
eonspicuou.s let us not be ashamed to adopt the same