Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1852-06-12

IN which they rescued from OBLIVION Sre gwen ny t
deae in works of this kind and certificates from certain
high tribunals cheeruy furnished. SO that they be
come quite genuine Those that either very bad,
SO obs cured by smoke not be percepuble at ALL arr
caught up with ayidiy by gentlemen Of taste and for
tune who come over every winter repenish their gale
res at home with the productions Of genius Not winte
passes THAI an original Guercino Perugno, Tntoreto
Julio Romano manufactured during the preceding sum
mer Is not carried off in triumph Wy the fortunate pur
chaser to be hung up for the admiration Of discerning
public in ENGLAND or America Statuettes basreliefs
and other gems of antiquity produced broken dis
figured and quated with equal facility and purchased
in the udcous manner evncing as the newspapers
say discriminating TASTE true appreciation Of the
works Of art and most liberal and enlightened spirit on
the part Of the distinguished purchaser" know gen.
eman who had picture that cost him ten or fifteen
dollars 1t erably good in ITSELF and he bought
merely because he thought it cheap at the price Some
time after being want Of money he sold it to
cous dealer who understood the process of getting up
famous old pictures think the purchaser called it
Guercino but am not certain At all events, it was at
tested genuine original by tribunal attached to the
Italian Academy of Art OF course after that, there
could be doubt to its authenticity and an English
nobleman whose taste in matters of this kind proven
ba and whose gallery contains many rare gems, doubt
less genuine this Immediately closed bargain for
il at thousand pounds and now it adorns his gallery,
and has probably delighted my learned andappreciatng
admirers Of the old masters, have been hesitatng
myself for time about purchasing Vandyke for two
dollars 1t can be auhentcat cd for FIVE, and the history
is worth three Any body who wants it can, by
paying exchange and postage have it for ten dollars
Antique vases from the ruins mpe which six months
ago were common clay, had for mere trife; and
coins covered with the mould of centuries, are as plenty
blackberies Besides, there manuscripts and au-
tographs without end.
Now really think it great pity that any Of our coun-
tymen should mad after things of this kind, when
they retain their much greater advantage
What difference does it make whether picture or q
statue be week old two three centuries, if it be
good? And why should bad production
whether original not put into ecsscies because it
happens be dirty, is made purposeiy If the pro-
lucon Of master known fame, it carl only to
show how the greatest masters sometimes fail and if not
does possess the interest of association Very
few originals by the distinguished artists " past ages
except those in the public galleries and private palaces
extant nowadays English wealth has purchased them
as fast as they appeared at the hazard of mposon
and such now occasionally brought to light
either by inferior artists who never held high rank
among their contemporaries, or mere copies The guilt
,ught to be national feeling with cast aside this
lavish prejudice, and encourage American art While
We have such sculptors Powers, Crawford, and
and such painters Page, Leutze, Weir,
Kellogg yanderlynn, Healy, Harding, and many
,thers whose names / could mention if necess ary,
Why should We lumber up picture galleries with old
rash which has been smoked into antiquity genuine,
deserves to be smoked into oblivion study Of the @
cisms of Goethe Winkelman Schiller, Lessing and sone
Others whose are associated with all that is beau
tfu in art and all that calculated inspire exalted
idea Of its power and destiny may be cassed among the
delightful of intellectual enjoyments; but doubt il
it tends to produce that calm and dspassonate estimate
of the realities Of art without which is useless to exer
else reason. We might well give up at once, and
admit that nothing be donethat the of ex
ceence has passed. and art has surpassed nature that
the power of combining and dspong Of the highest ele
ents of the natural has been exhausted 1t is incense
the works Of which would obterae the creations
of divinity. The opinions Of such writer's works Of
art valuable in leading to high appreciation of
the beautiful but they should be incautousy adopt
ed because Of their Genius is not nfabe and
in respect is it likely to in the estimate of the
productions of others. There is in highly intellectual
tendency to invest inert matter with attributes
which is not in the power of mortal to nfuse into
it. The greatest artists Of ancient times would probably
be asonshed the interpretations given Of their
works. could they make their appearance in the world in
the present age and would doubtless feel at loss
prehend the by which such conclusions reach
ed Its style Of criticism much in vogue among lite
rary of late yearstakng subject suggested by the
work of another merely basis for the display Of the
mental powers Of the critic. There are some men Of
genius such as Byron, who discourse eloquenty and
beautifully no matter how unworthy may be the subject
even without subject while there others who
really believe what they say and afford equal pleasure
yet may it be that in the first instance there is little
seworshp in the case and in the last that the judgment
is warped by enthusiastic admiration Of all the associ-
atoms Of art, and by nsensbly investing works Of art
with attributes which spring from their minds look
ing not at what has been actually DONE but object
adorned with beauties which the author was incapable Of
ooncevng, ideazed by the genius Of the beholder
express him thoughts that were suggested
the inferior mind? But not going to run of into
labyrinth Of metaphysics for would really think after
dipping into the mysteries Of art delightfully."- setforh
in the works of the great critics, that it was the most
metaphysical study in the world and that it was only for
the highly enlightened few who pursued the probationary
paths Of preparation reach the great truths therein
taught and from which the of mankind are excluded
by of mental darkness whereas take it that any
of capacity, who has eyes to and hear
to feel and sense enough make good Of his
and independence enough TO judge for himself form
just and correct opinion Of productions Of which
the original Is after all nature the greatest Of
kind for human power is limited, and be grea
| in all things.