The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1869-07-14
TWO PORTRAITS.

TWO FOIN10hIESs
A life ill-spent Who has not kr own
one such in the course of their existence?
How easy is the earth-weary. disap-
pointed, ever-seeking look to be detected
in the face of one whose life has been ILL
spent? None who once caught glimpse
of Henri Seller could doubt that his
past life had been one of wretched dis
appointment, and that his present life
was one of bitter retrospection of the
past. At the age of thirty-three he sat
in his apartments, in an obscure street in
Paris, without friend in the world, or
the means of making any. He was q
portrait painter by profession, but with
out influence and with little ambition.
At the early age of fourteen he had been
compelled to work for his and his
mothers daily bread; by perseverance
he, when sixteen, was enabled to give
his mother what he termed luxuries, but
what people in better circumstances
would have considered but the bare ne
cessities of life-a comfortable bed in q
cozy room and sufficient to eat-he was
then as happy as possible, when return
ing home one day to his dinner, he found
his mother dead. From that moment he
ceased to care for himself; all he under
took he failed in; his employers all
blamed him; he blamed fate, and thus
for seventeen years he existed, too in
different to do good or evil-fully per-
tunates, and that to alter his destiny he
should have to conquer the world.
He had always possessed ability for
painting, and it was just after the death
of his mother that he took fancy to it,
hn IN int ~
urged him to study; the result was, at
the end of six months he produced q
most perfect picture of his mother; but
as no one had ever seen her, his genius
was unacknowledged, and once more
he gave up in despair, and for years ne
elected his art. He travelled from place
to place, arriving at each place without
a cent. One thing he never neglected,
the cultivation of his mind. He edu-
Gated himself on every learnable subject,
and, finally, having acquired all the
knowledge possible, he dropped study,
and without any settled purpose he went
to Paris, his birthplace. The gaiety for
time drove away his melancholy, and
in one of his joyous moods he became
possessed Of the idea to once more turn
to his art. He at once, with the very
small sum of money he had, hired two
roCMs-one he made O studio, of the
other his bedroom. Not picture was
visible in either room, nor was there the
slightest item to indicate the artist
about either room, except plate on the
door with the words, "Henri Seller,
portrait painter" engraved upon it. For
two weeks he had been installed in his
studio, waiting for what evidently was
not going to come-a customer. In two
weeks more his reut would be due, and
it was this fact that he was meditating
over when the door opened and lady,
deeply yelled, timidly entered. Of course
Henri rose instantly, but too astonished
at the unexpected visit of lady to be
the first to speak.
"Will monsieur show me the way to
the studio of Monsieur Sellier?'
Madame is at present in that place.
"Then you, presume, are Monsieur
Seller"
Madame, am"
''Are you good portrait painter?"
Yes" quietly rejoined Henri.
''By whose verdict pronounced such,
might I inquirer"
"Ahem! My own solely, madame"
Gould see specimen of your paint
ing?"
II have but one portrait here at pre-.
sent. having just arrived. will show
it to you; but pray be seated"
The lady looked first at the door, then
at Henri, and finally at the proffered
chair, in which, after O moments heai-
tation, she sat. Henri placed foot
stool before her-an action Which some
what amused the lady, and caused her
to laugh audibly; Henri, very much
puzzled at her merriment, knew not
what to say. The truth was, he had
never done the slightest office for any
lady but his mother. and her comfort
was o foot-stool. Henri, forgetting the
age and weakness of his mother, and
never having been thrown in contact
with any other woman, fancied, of
course, that to one and all were the same
things necessary and agreeable. The
pause that followed his action was most