New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1871-11-10
THE JARVES PAINTINGS.
.uvrp SALE YESTERDAY-YALB COLLEGE THE
IhA' PURCHAsER-$22,00 900 REALIZED.


=, "A security for loan Of $4,000 for three years
80 70 MI Jamos jackson Jarves, his wel-kno"n
on.c,,ou OF Pictures BY early italian Masters anu
,.d them in one Of the galleries OF the Yale schooi
:, the Fine Arts, building presented 70 tne 'oi
10. by the late Augustus Russell street. and then JUS
.ompleted 1t was hoped, not only by the owner VI O
tnres but by all those who interested IN SeoE
- r,oe Arts flourish In this country, that by the ue
~. three years should be up, some inoi'loua'
- anne socicty-perhaps the College lESen-"U ~.
:. ready to purchase the COLLECTION ~ ~"
I,vss's prict-S6OOOO-which sum, large @s may
on.m. was less. according to MS CScuiStion
- thew had cost him But it must be confessed Ihat
never showed liking for these pictures ut all
.o-ne 70 that felt for them by few persona Ahu
IN. rnbc cannot be blamed for not liking pictures NJ
slrn 70 all it, standards OF excellence "he'ner III
go design OF IN their execution 50 II is no naVeI! 10
,not the few who did like the pictures ana VINO
-. hecan,e enthusiastic over them were people to
-, owing TO the better opportunities they had en-
80 neither their matter nor their man
x.as arrange. They were delighted, ana
ro,, naturally, with the opportunity OF SEQ
A., without the trouble Of crossing the
- GOOD specimcnS they were credi6y assured
'sr. Of the works Of the early Italian artists
mi whom Ruskin, Mrs Jameson, and Rio, and Lind
-. and many smother writing so eloqaently and
..o1,,rlv And the pictures themselves had a charm
- ,hosa who studied them without having had the OPP
+rr,r Of comparing them with better and, In several
80. with more authentic, works by the same hands
htts certainly very easy to understand Yet. somehow
o,hsr all the admiration Of the educated people had
eject a; al IN the unrducaed. They turned deaf
oil the charming, and bpttoned their pockets and
-, them buttoned. 1t would be very easy TO
- hard words about these unregenerste men who
ond not believe the gospel that was preached to them
h IN nuch uncton. Many 81 Us struck quickly. being
ovea and indeed quickly moved, to strike these
A Of the house Of Montague who hit their thumbs at
ych f,NOE n
Gov, B,t thew have gone biting their thumbs to this
a. and co strong las been the current OF popular indt
trenoe standing mlsliking. and even hostility
4hat there has boon time when 1t was
cyan Likely that half the money asked Tor
these pictures coud be raised to buy them
either in Eew-York or in Boston, by any
srneal 10 the general public. Why then, it may he
ssked did rot the few who Lad studied them enjoyed
e. aud knew their value club together and buy them
fr themsrlvcsi Among these admirers were some very
ch men to whom the 100000 asked for them would
he easy 20 pay. Why did not one OF these men step
forward and relieve Of tie disagreeable charge OF
Indifference great opportunity
Well then, the simple truth is that we had no single
man among us much less any body Of men, who pos
ssed such scientific knowledge Of the subject Of early
ITALIAN sr-Or OF any Italian art for that mattei-as
would enable him to force the public, or any portion OF IT,
Of the sword OF conviction. elOquence, political
economy 10 what he knew to be wise lnvestmen
OF it, money And In the small circle OF those who
really valued and enjoy the pictures for what they
found in them, there were the Pravest aud
most reasonable doubts TO the worth of
the opinion, and to the trustworthiness
OF the assurances Of the collector himself We have no
Intention Of allowing the public Of which we are one, to
lie undeserved reproach, and while we hold the
generality people excused for not caring about PIC
lures which nothing in their education or their oppOr-
unties had fitted them to enjoy insist that those
who did something about pictures, and 10 whose
cars a. they opened a great many reports and
Eumors crept-sOme by highways aud some by OyWays-
equally free from blame for fighting shy OF step
chat they feared might prove misstep. Mr.. Jarvess
books never inspired any confidence In his
learning, In his perception; travellers found
Ihst In Florence where lie had lived Tor many years.
neither his perception his judgment, nor the coIecon
pf pictures his perception and Judgment mad heped MIN
10 form, much Thought Of Mistakes thst al tne
town had heard Of egreGious bunders that he himself
with angular candOr, 1t must he cOnfessed-publlshed
10 the world destroyed in Florence all his claims, II he
aver had any there, to sound cOunoisseurshlp II couo
not but about that these facts would have strong
influence on the minds Of the who had cultivation
SnOuEh 10 be Interested in the Jarves pictures Nor
could they keep nom communicating their impressions
and reflections 10 those below them
Now that the pictures have passed out Of their late
Vvners hands 1t may be thought unnecessary to bring
up Otb for the public dstrust But we are in
tent ustying Ourselves and therefore add that
n impression got abrOad-and 1t were wrong one,
Mr. JarVes only himself 70 blame for -that, merely
looked upon Of merchandise, IT was not cer-
that the value Of the collection could he positively
Known The catalogue Of 1900 prepared for the first ex
hbtOn Of the pictures at the Derby Gallery contained
The names Of paintings When they were exhibited
the Historical sOcietys rooms in 1868 the catalogue
showed only l Names and now the catalogue prepared
At the request Of Yale College by Nj Russell sturgs r
FOR the collection hangs the walls Of the Yale
Inf IipaA Ava riv nlv TUpD
pictures have then been withdrawn from the collection
since It was first exhibited. Where theyl The
PLANTATION Is simple. They were Withdrawn from time
" time and either sold placed with friends security
FOR money advanced, and about OF them and that
Of the most precious, there mysterious story OF
which only side-that OF Mr.. Jarveshas yet been
heard Doubtless Mr.. Jarves had perfect right to with
draw those pictures. His mistake was in not dong
openly publicly, and frankly, but all the time talking Of
The collection unit and letting the fact that
pictures missing leak out and damage his credit In
HE very catalogue prepared for the auction sale Of
terdsy have a specimen of this want Of sraightfor
ward deang-the rock which Mr. Jarvess enterprise
has gone 70 piecesin the statement that Of the
pictures in the collection, when it was first exhibited
never belonged 20 Mr. Jarves and were added 10 the
collection for purposes Of exhibition only" The public
always little increduouB when advantage is taken Of
The marriage tie facilitate the shifting Of property,
and refuses allow with its plain good sense and nat
Hr uprghtness that such cOnveyanceE have any bold
equity We very far from meaning to charge Mr.
JSrVes with doing wishing 70 do anything wrong All
a. Be not frank and straightforward at first, and
when he was accused OF not being So his explanation
made thugs no better 3d. too with the purchase Of
lie pictures. The impression industriously given
70 the public that they were Ia
OOrOusly and painfully picked up here and
here, and that they had cost large sum Of money But
Hsselsve they nearly all bought at one time Of
h dealer and that their cost far less than the pub
Nc IA ooen given 10 understand. Now the pictures are
none The worse for having been bought in this way nor