Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1874-12-29
EVENING STAR.
Mr.. Summers Pictures.
TIE RECENT SALE IN BOSTON OF A PoeTTox I
BIS RESrEsr To LEE ART nIrsEr-n

TIE RRCENT SALE IN BOSTON OF A PoRTTox OF
BIS BECCEsT To THs ART MUSEUM
Boston correspondent Of the Worcester Spy
ftfeTs In the following terms 20 the sale az anc-
tiOE of "a me u the pictures which the late Sen
stCr sumner beoueSthed TO the Art Museum,
10 he kept or disposed Of" 81 deemed beet by
Tie u usttos:
Lsrt Friday the engtsvings and painting
IN Mt. Summers collection were ssld At Auc-
ton. They were left nv Mr.. Sumner 20 the
AN Museum, 20 he kept or sold, IS the trustees
tEoCeht beet. The collection ~ss a miscellAne-
Gus we, many Of the pictures having been
given 10 MIR Sumner, and having little or no
srttsiic value. Mr.. Summers own colIec tion of
tngrsved portraits of distinguished men was an
interfering ore, and large portion OF that the
Art Museum las kept; none of the pictures
Sold we're rare, but many of them were good
impressions OF popular engrsyings, the heads
81 The painters, Dante and Beatrice" 1.-The
old TemerSire, ;" The Chocolate Cir, aNrs
Stowe" Poetry" and others Is common
hey brought fair prices, but there WAS no ex-
Ci'eme Mt in tie bidding. cabinet sized pha-
tOsraph OF Lord StsnhOpe, with his note of pre-
fentstion on the margin, sold for as %, and a
lhtle colored print OF some madonna, think,
lnocrsed by Mr.. Sumner a. given 20 him hy
Lord BroUghSm, sold for so. That was the
only inetsbCe where a large price was paid.
eViteutly ter the sake Of Mr.. sumner. A large
engraving or the " Feast % Cans by Provost.
brought $50; "A Virgin in the Clouds With the
tvAnEeiists' brought $50; the others ranged
fftTn IS "a 40.
The Gil paintings were not sooi. II prsss-
tie that ar. Sumner himself was not greatly
OrCt IyI0 in them, ant Ii Sc he valued than
from association or ss gitts. His own suggestion
taht lne Arr Museum might sell them VOull
IN l'y this. The catalogue sent 10 We snfngton
attributed several OF TIE paintings 20 farnnns
hT'iste' nut At the hrst exhibition OF them the
trustees Q: TIE Ant Museum showed their op.n-
i.' by adding a note 60 the catalogue stating
that tf5y we're not responsible for the stfribu.
ton; ard at the SAFE on FCiday there vas a no
tee On the Catalogues that no guarantee could
ce given with any picture. ~ c-urss. the oil
TA.ntinss we're not desirable after al this dis
Iarsge ment The people at the auction knew
4 q fufNr hn rWQ waU.a-e - n
art Museum bac duplicates ana triplica.es of
them; but that really fine pictures had 10 du-
plcate5 anc would have been kept ana treas
uUsd. SO IL came abOU. that a painting signed
Rembrandt sold for so, and a Landscape signed
Sa!vst 7 Rosa Tor 500. The biddiog was very
slow. BY hard work and urgency tae auctioc-
etr got $3.50 TOR farm ward by Herring. and
$40 for cattle piece attributed u Hobhima
The big "Msgdslen," a b IS copy from Guido.
sold for SlC5, and pretty good copy o. Tiiian's
Bella for sci. There were between : XIV and
seventy pictures sold, and the prices Of the
Others ranged from SIS TO $50 The bidding was
60 dali, and IL took so long 10 get even small
Irices, that the sale Of the large collection OF
photographs was put OF till the next day, and
probably great many of these we're bought as
memorials OF their former owner.
Some OF Mr.. Summers friends feel hurt aud
indignant at this sale of his pictures Bat
there Is something 10 be said for the au-
scum. How could il keep the paintings Il? and
~ seillng them how could IL honestly help say
Ing that II did rot believe in them En-
cravings take up 20 little room that they nl.ht
have been kept, but then the beGuest was used
81 suppose all requests are, for the benei, OF
the receiver, not OF the maker. There Is NJ
doubt that the sale seemed a little hurried and
dlsrespeetful, and that it was quite without SEN
ument; but is IL not unreasonable 60 expect
sentiment OF any corporation, excepting of
those ;hat exist for sentimental philanthropy ?
The art museum considered its own Interests
sind It's own standard of value; it took from
The miscellaneous collection which MT. Sumner
gave it all that il really wanted, and sold tAs
T T. lt lie poor and IL must be thrifty; and al
though ~ seems hard and unsympathetic, u has
really done no wrong.