Burlington hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington, Iowa) 1845-185?, 1849-03-29
The AMERICAN pANoRAMA.

Of the Mississippi and Missouri rivers.
With one or two exceptions, its remarka-
bic claims to public notice seem scarcely
to have been recognized as they deserve.
We recommend them to the consideration
OF all holiday makers and sight-seers this
Christmas. II may be well to say what
the panorama is not. It is not refined
work Of art (nor does it claim to be, in Mr.
Banvard's modest description J it is not
remarkable for accuracy Of drawing, or
for brilliancy Of color, or for subtle effects
Of light and shade, or for any approach TO
any Of the qualities of those delicate and
beautiful pictures by Mr. Stanfield, which
used, once upon time, to pass before our
eyes in like manner. Ii is not very skill
fully set off by the disposition Of the arti-
ticial light; It il not assisted by anything
but piano-torte and seraphine. But It
is picture three miles long, which occu-
pies two hours in its passage before the
audience. 1t is picture Of one Of the
greatest streams in the known world
whose course it follows for upwards Of
three thousand miles. 1t is picture ir-
reststibly impressing the spectator with
conviction Of its plain and simple truthful
ness, even though that were not guaran-
teed by the besttestimonials. It's an easy
means Of travelling, night and day, with
out any Inconvenience from climate, steam
boat company, or fatigue, from New Or
leans to the Yellow Stone Bluffs { or from
the Yellow Stone Bluffs to New Orleans,
as the case may be, and seeing every
townand settlement upon the river s banks.
and all the strange, wild ways Of life that
are atioat upon its waters. To see this
painting is, in a word, to have thorough
understanding Of what the great American
river is-except, we believe, in the color
Of its water-and TO acquire new power
oftesting the descriptive accuracyofjts best
DISORDERS. These three miles of canvas
have been painted by one man--and there
he IS, present, pointing out what he deems
most worthy Of notice. This is his histo-
ry: Poor, nntaught, wholly unassi>ted, he
conceives the idea-a truly American idea
of painting 'the largest picture in the
world" Some capital must be got for the
materials, and the acquisition Of that is his
primary object. First, he starts ga float
ing diorama" on the Wabash river, which
topples over when people come to see il,
and keeps all the company at the pumps
for dear life. This entertainment. draw
ing more water than money, and being set
upon, besides, by robbers, armed with
bowie-knives and rifles, is abandoned.-
Then, he paints panorama Of Venice, and
exhibits it, in the West. successfully, un-
al It goes down in steamer on the wes-
tern waters. Then, he sets up museum
at St Louis, which fails. Then. he comes
down to Cincinnati, where he does no bet
ter. Then, without farthing, he rows
away on the Ohio in a small boat, and lives,
like wild man, upon nuts, until he sells
a revolving pistol, which cost him twelve
dollars, for five-and-twenty. With the
proceeds of this commercial transaction he
buys larger boat, lays in little store of
calicoes and cottons, and rows away again
among the solitary settlers along shore,
bartering his goods for beeswax. Thus,
in course OF time, he earns enough to buy
a little skiff, and 60 to work upon the pic
ture. In his little skifI, he travels thou.
sands Of miles, with no companions but
his pencil, rifle and dog, making the pre-
paratory sketches. Those completed, he
erects temporary building at Louisville,
Kentucky. in which to paint the lorgest
picture in the world. Without the least
help, even in the grinding of his colors,
or the splitting Of the wood for hi. ma
ehinery, he falls to work, and keeps at
work; maintaining himself, meanwhile,
and buying more colors, wood and canvas,
by doing odd jobs in the decorative way.
At last, he finishes the largest picture in
the world, and opens it for exhibition on
a stormy night, when not single "hu-
man" comes to see it. Not discouraged
yet, he goes about among the boatmen, who
are well acquainted with the river, and
gives them free admission to the largest
picture in the world. The boatmen come
TO see it, are astonished It it, talk about it.
Our country wakes up from a rather sui
len doze at Louisville, and comes TO see it
too. The upshot is, that it succeeds and
here it is, in London, with its paintlp
standing on little platform by its side ex-
planning it-and, probably, by this time
next year, it and he may be in Timbucto.
Few can fail TO have some interest in such
an adventure, and in such an adventurer,
md they will both repay it amply. There
Is mixture Of shrewdness and simplicity
in the latter which is very prepossessing;
. modesty and honesty and an odd, original
humor, III his manner of telling what he
has to tell, that give il a peculiar relish.
The picture itself, as an indisputably true
and faithful representation Of a wonderful
region-wood and water, river and prai-
RE, lonely log-hut and clustering city ris-
ing in the forest--is replele with interest
throughout. Its incidental revelation. Of
the different states Of society, yet in tran
sition, prevailing at different points of
these three thousand miles-slayes and
free republicans, French and Southerners
immigrants from abroad, and restless Yam
KEGS and Down-Easters ever streaming
somewhere; alligators, store-boats, show
boats, theatre boats, Indians, Buffaloes .le-
serted tents ofaextinct tribes, and bodies
Of dead braves, with their pale faces turn
ed up TO the night-sky, lying still and SOL
itary in the wilderness, nearer and near
or 10 whichth outposts of civilization are