New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1860-05-05

1neee IN the nson rance tnsr tnOugnVul eyes they ao
supposed, we presume to catch inspiration and re-
newed of responsibility and out, from she sight
Of these four winged, and jolly, and iosy babies How
nucb all this nonsense nay have cost We do not know,
nor do We think Il point Of much con'equsnoe. But
il Ia striking instance Of the general nssppropriasion
Of money, that room, which required only tnp's
and dgDied treatment should be adorned like dane
ng-ha, bile IT Is finished with doors and window
frsm-s and shutters Of painted pine.
But &c here the purpose Of illustration wS missed,
in OTTER places where it rightly apprehended the
result is no better. The Military Committee-room,
penurious sgain in pinc like all the rest ex'ravagant
in psipt From floor TO centsrpieoe, with no protect
ing wspsso il CLOVIS with color. Pilssers are h'led
with pictured representations Of the arms Of all ages,
crow dtd together In Heterogeneous m.ss without order
or sequence and spaces above are filed or are 70 DO
filed, with paintings in fesco OF celebrated battles
One Of these is the fight at Lexington. Britain OH
Ger on a mhshspen Indian pony, which is mean for
horse ares pistol over the bead Of soldier, crowd
Of his companions standing about Like countrynsn at
turkey shooting, 10 zee If he is hit druumer-ooy
lie in the act of lodging. One bufly fellow Is bid from
nothing behind sapng about the size Of his own leg,
while the B,ith troops in toe background have their
guns kveled and are in the act of oischsrging voey
color, tase in conception, false in treatment and ba,
nothing American sbout it except cooked hats. The
other finished picture is the death Of somebo5y-we
forget who nor it of tho least consequence for il
may 90 we'll be one peron snother-who is carefully
sipped for surgical examination before he il borne
from the field Of battle. Like the other it IT, a. work
Of art, simply detestable.
The polite Secretary of the Naval Committee handed
us on entering their room, the following description of
its d, coratiops:
oDHscRIPrIoH THE NAVAL COMMITTEE ROOM.
"The genera! de.ien Of the Caoito being Of Greek
ard Roman origin, and OF the Corn THAN order and
proportion the decor, ton OF this room IL pnncpay
tended as specimen Of the decorative painting used
In that era iouDd in the remans Of the old tresco
antilg Ut Pompeii Herculaneum, the imperial pal
ard baths Of old Rome AS the use OF this room
for the Committee on Naval Affairs, the ceiling has
been painted in esco after the manner OF the ancienn
Tt principal figures representing the Greek go1desses
Of the tho reader will find the name OF each writ
ten under ihem tie smaller tho Nsdes Mercedes,
Syreuf and Tritons de@ rbed in the poetic ytho-
oey OF ancient Greece The figures the walls also
ue rate The purpose Of this rcon each bearing an ap
propriae emblem ell er Of the sea or OF modern nav,
gstop. The blank spaces sf in the arch OF the wall
are intended 70 be filed with pictures OF the naval bat
ties Of the United Stsee Also in the Elk crcles on
the plasters in low relief, the portraits OF the most
disn, ushed naval commanders. This style has been
al~sys regarded by the Intelligent crit: and amateur
Of the fine precious relic OF the taste Of the
masterp Of antiquity, aud although the style not IN
common for modern decorations yetn most OF the
palaces Of Europe specimen OF the manner thought
necessary to the completion az museum OF beaufy 90
that Raphael and other old es of the fifteenth cen.
tur, have employ ed in the decoration Of the Vatican,
| i'll Rome, aid other palaces In Italy,.
This Of course, makes the bess Of II, and possibly
renders any further description supeerogstory In one
two points, however, we beg leave to differ with
The critic. We do ret recognize rs necessary con-
sequence that this ceiling shsuld DO painted after the
manner Of the ancenis," because, "tasl the use OF
the room 10 for the Committee Naval Affairs" nor
do We acknowledge that this manner Of decoration is
appropriate to halls of legislation in this country be-
cause in most of the palaces of Europe specimen 10
though. necessary the completion Of musaum OF
| beauty" As the Capitol is no more museum OF
beauty than il is of wild beasss-we mean fourfooted-
ito CON petion no more requires that lis rooms should
be painted after the manner of Pompei, or Hercua-
neum or the imperial palaces and baths Of Rome, than
il does that Bengal tiger should be chained In the
Rc,unoa or an alligator from the hanks Of the Nile be
hept in that remarkable basin behind it. We have no
objection TO hestben gods and goddesses to Nstads.,
Nereides Syrens, and Trtors, all sanding naked in
the open air" in their proper places; but it would be
more in keeping with the supposed spirit OF our usa
utoDs, more in accordance with the dictates Of eom-
mon sepse and common deceucy If they were very SPAR
Dgly used, il used at all in adornng the rooms to be
devoted 10 the business of legislation We cannot see
| for instance, the relation between Leda and the
| Swan, pictured here in a variety Of attitudes aud
the American Navy, whether in practical 4s;hetic,
| or passional sense. The American eagle, we trun,
10 bird Of another feather, and not given to such
| cratic and erotc courses. But perhaps we are
dull Under these delinsatons Of passional s'trsc-
! ton there may be q hidden and subtle meaning
which fail to penetrate. We honestly confess
that this careeIing circle Of webfooted csntaur
bearing of this beautiful maiden-the maiden now IN
densnt and defiant, her taper fingers twned in despe
rate despair in bis thick curs, and now sinking, with
bushiDg cheeks and swimming eyes, in ascvious and
IspsusbiDg con,ebtmeDt upon his back-ths, we con-
fcss bafss II battles ua, We mean, as TO It's rela
| ton TO ships and dock yards, to guns and POWDER
to hoI est jack Tas and stout cid commodores while
do pretend to much youthful innocence as to
be incapable Of catching from il another meaning. Bu
we sy be permitted to doubt whether the themes OF
these frescoes have inaepcs the most suggestive to
honorable members Of the hard details of the naval ser
| vice. However DO BARN was meant; this, like al
the rest 10 only bluncer the artist doing well as
he knees how and failing to do better bscanse Of his
poverty of invention and culture. AL this decoration
| is OH POmpe snd Hercul.neum. The luxurious poo-
pie Of those cities illustrated everything by the aTtsi
bti- public place. their private houses their bans,
their bouses of entertainment of every character were
orDsneD.d by mural painting. To the artist OF this
room war enough that the des gus came from those
cities snd be probably felt that he could not go far
wong If he introduced wster-gods and gods OF the
wiDds, squstc birds, and sea monsters and anything