The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1856-09-25

| nunicaI'e saieSman. a little golden argu-
ment persuaded him to give me the address, in
Seven Dials, OF a certain little Jew, who was a
broker and bailif, and kept q shop that had
all its goods turned out upon the pavement as
if he had been serving an "execution on
himself for practice. He swore, EXCEPTIONALLY,
that be knew nothing of any "Catherine,
1845." female figure, such as had de-
scribed, but with no name, he had indeed dis
posed of lately. to my friend of Leicester
Square-who did not make 80 bad thing out
of me, after all-for six-and.thirty shillings,
without frame. He thought it not bad stroke
of business. 1t was part of the effects of a
poor painter lately deceased, and had been dis
posed OF with other almost worthless property
OF his. Now, here was a noble scheme of mine
knocked on the head at once! had intended
to have been the patron of an unknown but
mighty genius. / had pictured myself as the
like parasitic plant, should cling and to
which, after venturing its tender limbs on this
side and on that, and meeting everywhere with
rule repulse, they should return for new strength
and consolation. I--who could feel the power,
though had it not myself-the cherisher of the
sacred fame, although myself unconsecrate-
had intended to have placed the laurel-crown
upon his head who lacked one subject, and to
have proclaimed him sovereign whom not one
voice acknowledged. Alas came too late /;
but not to hear his history, and the history of
| my picture.
The Jew said there were other paintings, but
not worth any mans removal: / might see
them in the lodgings where the dead man had
dwet. With my heart beating high at the
thought of rescuing the works of some new
Velasquez from dissertation, l accompanied
the broker to neighboring court, and up three
mir Cf stoira tn q ANAL oarrot Thara q
sky-ight in it, certainly, but it did not look like
the painting room of a great artist Of the mod
ern time.
The woman of the house, a loud, expectant
person, was loquacious enough concerning her
late ledger.
"a young man he was, or leastways not an
old man maybe thirty, but he looked forty
always a painting, painting, and drawing, and
humming to himself like had no name ex-
cept Mr.. Richard, as ever she heard on nobody
had ever asked about him and It was twelve
months, come Christmas, since he'd lived there.
Didn't think he had any friends but her son
Jackey; didn't know what he died Of; didn't
know anything, except that she was owed a
matter of six-andforty shillings by him, and
that she was poor, lone widow, and couldn't
afford to lose it."
Her "son Jackey," rather pretty, curly.
headed boy of eight or ten, was examined, and
deposed:
aKnew Mr.. Richard very well indeed ;
didn't know his surname; didn't know what
surname was, himself; liked to see him
paint, which he did beautiful, very much was
very sorry be was dead, because he had prom
Used to paint o picture for him, Jackey, which
he began, but, being dead, of course could do
no more to it." Picture produced, wherein the
same mastery hand was recognised here and
there only; not good likeness, but the details
admirably and carefully worked up. "Was
quite certain Mr.. Richard had never spoken OF
anybody by name, except of his, Jackey's,
mother-perfectly certain. Now the gentle
man mentioned it, remembers that Mr.. Rich.
ard did say, over and over again, and many
times, Catherine! Catherine Used to
speak to picture of a woman in that manner,
which WAC sold at the sale. He used to do
summit or other to that picture every day
particularly remembers fetching him it, as Mr..
summit at the back of it."
At this point, Jackey's narrative dissolves in
| 'S"rs - 49, ;..sti cation of his mother
who perceives the stranger gentleman is q
friend of the dead gentleman, and is come to
see her righted," or on his own account, can
not tell. There are good many unframed
pictures about the room, small, but unfinished
a pretty country scene or two, evidently from
nature, and few portraits, apparently from
memory; but nothing to be mentioned in the
same breath with the" Catherine" A rather
large historical picture, just sketched in, the
intention good and evident, but the figures in.
differently drawn, it seemed scarcely possible
could have been the work of the same hand;
little sketches, all clever, principally of the
humorous sort, were scattered here and there
The whole convinced me that their author was
one who had not given up existence without
much struggling had tried every branch Of
his profession to gain livelihood, and thai
sufficiently well to have succeeded almost in
any one of them. That almost had ruined
him. There was talent genius, even perIee
ton, in many things, out there was listless
ness, ennui, and despair, in every one. Blu
the Catherine That was no "clever
performance, no excellent attempt" no 'n-sn
tice work of any kind; and now be couli
have painted that, vas an enigma I was deter
, ! ...led to solve. Woman re.e-au,;nsd. de
E posed-that there were bundles and bundles O
!, letters burnt by Jackey, at Mr.. Richards de
sire, as he lay a-dying. A few, not burnt
that she had opened, in hopes to find hi,
, friends, in order that she might recover be-
,, rent and other matters, had the names at tn,
end of each cut off, or carefully erased.
could have them all for shilling. So Il inves
that capital, and promise to call again abou
, the pictures; and, rewarding her for her inform
alton, and the Jew for his assistance, return
home with my second purchase.
,, / had no doubt, in my own mind, of the pro
priety of examining these letters. 1t was,
persuaded myself, with the intention Of disoov
Aring the friends OF this poor artist, and of rem
dering up to them the effects which would hav
, value, in their eyes, greater than in those O
, stranger, for it could not be but such q maj
as he must have had friends at one time, if no
! sympathizers. Besides this, confess my de
sire to discover the original of my Catherine
passed all bounds.
I A small packet of letters it was, that hat
either been transmitted by hand, or from whicl
the directions and postmarks had been care
fully erased-some of them apparently of re
cent date but most of them, to Judge by tn
WORKOUT edges Of their foldings and their fade
characters, written years ago. They were il
: no order whatever, and had been taken hap
hazard, as the woman said, from a heap 9
others. Here is one yellow with age, an
:, scarcely to be deoiphered, the oldest surely Q
J all the handwriting is woman's, but not re
! sembling the poets description
+" As when field of corn bows all its before tn
roaring East"-
: but decided and distinct in every letter:
e DEAREST RICHARD: am sorry to find 20
8 so cast down by your fathers resolve. d
. not think it less mistaken than you do, but
t must be obeyed. Set yourself steadily to wor
q at this distasteful matter do your very bes
: ct whatever cost Depression and irksomenes
d you must expect; disappointment and DISCUS
e indeed, you are like enough to feel; but 20
r know one who sorrows yet more deeply, throug
l. whose heart affection must strike first, ere
|, reaches yours and the blow should be surel