New-York tribune., 1874-09-21
THE MONTPENSIER PICTURES


CUssED.
rypou THE SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT or THE TRIBUss.i
BosToy. Sept 1p.-Tbe 55 pictures, mostly Span
ish. which have been lent by the Duke dc Montpen-
ser to the trustees Of the Boston Museum OF the fine
Arts will be shown on Monday the 2st inst, IN the
afternoon 70 the holders of complimentary tickets,
and ON Tuesday believe. the exhibition will bo
opened 10 the general public. suppose reed not
20 into details about the way IN which thus loan
came to be made. ALI your readers know oouotiess'
that the Duke de Montpensier, whose Duchess iSa
sister of the ex-Queen Of Spain, Isabella thougnt"
best in consequence of the long continued troup"S
in the Peninsula to send the pictures In his paaco
of ST. Telmo at Seville by which he set most store,
to Gibraltar whence they were to be forwarded to
London where Sir Francis Grant the President Of tho
RoyaI Academy. had offered them a room in the Ex-
hibition building. II happened, however, that just
as the pictures were ready to be sent off, the death OF
Sir Edwin Landseer, and the unexpected necessity
for devotng the Academy rooms to the exhibition Oh
his works. obliged the President to Withdraw MS
offer to the Duke de Montpensier, and the DUKES
pictures consequently remained IN the Custom-houSo
at Gibraltar. By q happy concurrence OF events
their destination now changed. MI. Arthur
Goldman Of Boston passing through OlOraitar
on his way Tenere, and hearing that the pictures
were stranded in the English Custom-house where
body it occurred to him that, by going the right
wov TO work. he might secure for his own country
men the enjoyment of them.
He accordingly wrote home that, If proper repre-
sentations were made to the Duke, and the safety
of the pictures guaranteed by responsible persons
it seemed likely that he might give his consent
to the pictures being sent to this country Appica
ton was Immediately made to the Duke through
Mr. Auguste Laugel, long the private secretary to
the Due dAumale and bimsef distinguished as
writer of no mean ability Mr.. Laugel Is married
to Boston lady, the daughter OF MIS-. Maria
Weston Chapman name that must ever De dear
TO lovers of liberty that OF one OF the earliest
most devoted and most sacrificing of the original
abolitionists-and as Mr.. Lauge is well acquainted
with all the parties representing the Museum OF
the Fine Arts in this matter. there could not have
been more suitable person through whom
TO make application to the Duke; and indeed the
request of the trustees was Immediately acceded to
in the most generous manner and in terms that
made the gift moro rich" There must be many
Americans to whom, considering the high character
of the members of the Orleans family and the rela-
tons that family has long sustained to our own
country the letter in which the Duke conveyed his
consent will give sincere and honorable pleasure
The only conditions exacted that the pictures
should be insured against marine and fire risk on
the valuations set down in the list which the Duke
sent to Boston, and the letter conveying these con-
ditions concluded with the following words:
have received with great satisfaction the letter Whch
YOU did me the honor to write to ne IN your name ana
in the name OF the trustees OF the Museum OF Fine Arts
at Boston concerning che loan OF certain number OF
works OF art to your gallery from my palace OF e@
Temo at Seville. In making this loan rejoice 10 tnhA
that the these pictures leave the place "nefo
they belong it Will occupy one In an American
! onor n1ag
have thus been able aid in spreading and develop
ing noble love OF the arts IN that great nation 10 Wheh
so many bonds have so long united the members oi my
family Three generations of 1t have already had the
rare good fortune to admire the spot ana 10 ueenu
the free institutions Of the United States, and shall
never forget the generous offers which we're mace 70
me in critical times by worthy representatives. OF your
great country.
Thus it came about that we are to have for yea
| at least the opportunity of studying small but
choice collection of the works of of the greatest
masters of the Spanish school 1t is impossible to
| tell what impression will be made upon Americans
by this exhibition. 1t is perhaps too late TO depre-
cate disappointed verdict founded on the too
| glowing sentences that have been printed IN ad-
vance IN the newspapers. Mr. Charles e. Perkins, 20
whom this scommunity is already SO much indebted
for learned and earnest work in educating II 10 q
taste for the Fine Arts, has given us the sober
which appeared, if / am not mistaken in The Da'tJ
Advertiser The actual state of the cannot be
| better expressed than in his own words ALTHOUGH
it would be absurd he writes, to pretend that the
best masters of the Spanish school are here repre-
sented by their finest works. which are only to be
| found in the great Spanish galleries. yet
these pictures offer an opportunity for enjoy
ment to the general public hitherto unat-
tainable ON this side of the Atlantic
! and to American artists chance to study such as
they have never before enjoyed out of Europe This
is the gist of the whole matter. Here in one small
room are 81 pictures whose equals have never been
seen on this side the water. They are not MASTER
pieces if compared with other pictures by the same
artists in the great galleries of Europe, but they ara
| masterpieces compared with what we have had the
| opportunity Of seeing here at home And those who
| know most about art know well that every great
master puts enough of himself into every picture he
paints for the student to judge him by SO, here III
the Muro is all the secret of Murllo; IN the Won
derful head by Velasquez there is enough to explain
| the Spanish admiration for Velasquez; and from
slow and careful study Of these pictures the names
of do Zurbaran. the elder Herrera, de III
balta, del Pombo, Salvador Rosa ana
de Morales must henceforth have for us an indVld-
| ual and clear meaning 1t is to be hoped that our
Young people and our artists will make good use OF
this opportunity and that the fruit of their study
will be shown in some solidity and earnesness III
fused into our American practice of art. 1t VIII DO
| strange if year with such pictures as these Goes
not do something to educate us-something to ralse
| our standard.
Of the four rooms formerly devoted to the exhlbl'
ton of pictures in the building of the Boston Athe
ngum two have been appropriated 10 the Montpen-
sier pictures but the finest of theseabout twenty
seven in number-are hing in one room, that which