Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1860-10-05


Under this title Rusiin, in his last volume
of "Modern Painters, gives the following elo-
quent comparison of the scenes among which
were passed the youthful lives of the painters,
Giorgione in Venice and Turner in London ;
Born halfway between the mountains and
the sea-tlat young George of Casteltranco-
of the Brave Castle Stout George they called
hlm-George of Georges, so g0odly boy he
was-Giorgione. Have you ever thought
what world his eyes opened on fair, search
ing eyes of youth What world Of mighty
life, from those mountain roots to the shore !;
of loveliest life, when he went down, yet SO
young, to the marble city, and became himself
as fiery heart to it. A city of marble, did
say =? nay, rather golden city, paved with
emerald For truly, every pinnacle and turret
glanced or glOwed 0verlaid with gold or bossed
with jasper. Beneath the unsulied sea drew
in deep breathing, to and fro, its eddies of green
wave. Deep hearted, majestic, terrible as the
seattle men of Venice moved in sway of
power and war pure as her pillars of alabas
ter stood her mothers and madens from foot
to brow all noble walked her knights the low
bronzen cleaning of sea-rusted armor shot
angrily under their bood-red mantle folds.
Fearless, faithful, patient impenetrable, i'm.
placabe-every word of fate-Sate her senate.
In hope and honor, mlled by flowing of wave
around their isles Of sacred sand, each with his
name written and the cross graved at his side
lay her dead. A wonderful piece of world.
Rather itself world. 1t lay along the face of
the waters, no larger, MS its captains saw it
from their masts at evening" than a bar of sun.
set that would not pass away but, Tor its
power, it must have seemed to them as if they
were sailing in the e1panse of heaven, and this
great planet, whose orient edge wldened
through either. A world from which all igno
BILE care and petty thoughts were banished,
with all the common and poor elements of life.
No toumess, nor tumuet in those tremuous
streets, that filled, or fell beneath the moon !:
but rippled music of ma estic change, or thrill
ling silence. No weak walls could rise above
them; no lOw-rooted cottage, nor straw-built
she'd Only the strength as OF "A rock and the
finished setting of stones most precious. And
around them, as far as the eye could
reach, still the swift moving of stainless wa
tiers, proudly pure as not the flower, so
neither the thorn nor the thistle, could grow
in the gancing fields Ethereal strength of
Alps, dream like, vanishing in high possession
beyond the Torcellan shore blue islands of
Paduan hills, poised in the golden west
Above, free winds and fiery clouds ranging at
their will brightness out of the north, and
balm from the south, and the stars of the ev-
ening and morning clear in the limitess
light Of arched heavens and circng sea.
Such Giorgiones such Titian's home.
Near the southwest corner of Covent Gar
den square brick pit or well is found by a
clos9set block of houses to the back windows
of which it admits few rays of light. Access
to the bottom of it is obtained out of Maiden
Lane, through a low archway and an iron
gate; and if you stand long enough under the
archWay to accustOm your eyes to the dark
ness, you may see on the left hand a narrow
door, which formerly gave quiet access to Il
respectable BARRIERS shop, Of which the front
window, looking into Maiden Lane is still ex-
tant, filled, in this year. (l860,) with row of
bottles, connected, in some detunct manner,
with a brewers business. A more fashionable
neighborhood, it is said, eighty years ago than
now-never certainly a cheerful one-wheren
a boy being born on st. Georges day, 1875,
begun soon after to take interest in the world
OF Covent Garden and put to service such
spectacles Of lie as it afforded.
No knights to be seen there, nor, | imagine
many beautiful ladies their costume at least
dsadvantageous depending much on incum
bency of hat and feather and short waists ;
the majesty of men founded similarly, on
shoebuckes and wigs; impressive enough
when Reynolds will do his best for it, but
not suggestive of much ideal delight to a boy.
"Bello ovile dow 10 dornin agueno;" of things
beautiful besides men and women, dusty sun
beams up or down the street on summer morn
ings deep furrowed cabbage leaves at the
green grorer's; magnifcence of oranges in
wheelbarrows round the corner and Thames
shore within three minutes race. None of
these things very glorious the best, howev
er, that England, it seems, was then able to
provide for boy of gift; who, such as they
are, loves them-never, indeed, torgets them
The short waists modify to the last his visions
of Greek ideal. His fairgrounds had always
succulent cluster or two of greengrocery at
the corners. Enchanted oranges CLEAN in
Covent Gardens of the Hesperides and great
ships go to pieces in order to scatter chests of
them on the waves That mist of early sun
beams in the London dawn crosses, many and
many time. the cearness of the Italian air /;
and by Thames shore, with its stranded
barges and gldings of red sail, dearer to us
than Lucerne lake or Venetian lagoon-by
Thames shore we will die.