The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1875-05-06
LETTER FROM BOSTON.


| prise II Is sure 10 succeed. Sucn Is likely IN
reality to prove the case with the National Cen
tennial, at least to its representation here. for
| the women who are working for it are doing so
in right good earnest. The executive commit
tee of this state including Mrs. Coy. Castor,
Mrs 5. L. Hooper and other prominent leaders
of metropolitan society, have already held two
receptions for raising funds, which were emil
nently successful. They were held last week
on two successive evenings in the Deacon
| House, an extensive mansion which has recent
ly been entirely retitted for private parties, &c
The whole house, with the exception of a suite
of rooms reserved for the accommodation of
the owner, is thrown open, and you may wall
der from one spacious chamber to another, or
from either Of several dance rooms to Il refresh
| ment hall, card room, reception parlor, or tete
| q tete hooks at pleasure. The house is beaut-
fully furnished, the walls freshly frescoed and
the polished floors unexceptional. Only one
thing is inferior and that is the pictures, many
of which are poor in themselves and others
poor copies. On the evenings of the Centen-
NAL receptions there We're about 600 persons in
the house, and there was no croWding, or dis
comfort. The ladies of the committee occupied
reception room, and here each person was
presented by an usher to Mrs. Hooper, the
chairman. and Mrs. Castor, the Governors
| wife 1t was. OF course, select assembly.
The ladies appeared generally in evening tot
| lette. although not few Wore dark silks and
dress hats The Germania band and two piano
forte PLAYERS furnished music for the dancers
| The evenings entertainment terminated At II
O'Clock.
This house, until within Il few years WAS
| owned by wealthy Boston family Of The name
it is still known by. 1t was closed for years,
the gentleman who built it having died and his
widow preferring to live abroad singularly
enough the children. who do not reside with
| their mother seemed also TO have dislike to
the place, and while it was in their possession
| they took up their residence on Beacon street.
| A!few years ago the furniture and China, which
| were elegant and artistic, We're sold At auction.
| Afterwaru the house was sold to 4 man who
rented it by apartments. 1t was then that so
many spiritual seances Were held there, and it
| was fast getting up 4 sort OF 'haunted' repu-
taton when ii fell into the hands Of the man
| who has restored it not exactly to its Old
grandeur, but to the beauty Of newness and
taste. 1t is strange fancy which leads persons
to give up some thing really fine and unique.
for something fashionable; bat association was
doubtless the seed Of dissatisfaction in this in
| stance.
one is always glad to live iii metropolis on
| the occasion of great events, and certainly the
| exhibition of the grand painting of The Prod
| igal Son." by the celebrated French artist, Ed
ward Dubufe, pupil Of Delaroche, is sufficient
| cause for such cOngratulation. 1t is mann
| moth canvass occupying the space of 20 by a.
feet, and comprising three pictures. The cen
trail and chief painting represents about forty
| figures in Il gorgeous scene of riotous teaStng
| The Prodigal Son stands on the portlco OF Il
magnificent palace, holding high a goblet of
wine, and surrounded by brilliantly dressed
| and beautiful women who by allurlnS attitude
and enticing expression are urging INN on TO
ruin. In the foreground is a group of musl-
| clans and fair women listening to the verses OF
| a poet. and to the left are three semi-nude te-
male dancers exquisitely posed as in the midst
| of poetic measures. On the right is Il third
group, illustrating the gambling element Of the
scene. A soldier has just thrown the dice, and
| in a kneeling posture he leans eagerly forward
| and sees that he has won, while male and
| female. both losers, look on with faces express
sive OF despair and recklessne>S. These are
the main figures. The others are secondary in
| Importance and are disposed in shadow, COM
| pleting the composition. pom the marble floor
| OF the palace court is Il luxurious eastern rug,
| aud flowers and artistic vessels filled with fruit
are protusely scattered about. In the arch of
| the portico two white doves are bending cooling
to each other, giving the key to the spirit of the
"1-~'r soon" - = - -~~;i-'H - Srn"l- "r'-
| trayaganty OF this magnificent conception, Of
| the brilliant coloring, of the rich draperieS. or
of the mastery drawing and grouping of the
colossal figures. | saw the picture in company
with an artist, who sighed over the splendid
| colors, and wished he could steal the secret of
mixing the crimson OF the troubadour's velvet
| costume. "But,' he said, ''if should try and
| think | had matched it exactly, on bringing it
here | should find it was nothing like it, for the
reason that those colors are so skiItully az
| ranged that what appears to be certain shade
is not in reality what it seems when by ITSELF
| For instance, what looked Il lustrous white in
| the woman's dress, relieved against the Prodi-
I 1t
| gray, he thought, il white We're put against it.
| When | wondered at the marvellous ease and
grace of position of the dancers, poised their
very toe tips, my companion said that in Paris
the professional models who pose for the artists
will stand thus for Al hour and a half nj a time
and scarcely move
Brilliant to the very possibility of combining
coiors as this central picture is in itself, it is
still further heightened in effect by the side
pictures, which are painted i'll simple black
and white. one represents the Prodigal in his
degraded state, tending the swine His wretch
ed figure is bowed in abject despair AT his
feet are the greedy animals he even enVes, and
over his head hover the carrion birds ready to
swoop upon the prey they instnciveIy feel will
soon be theirs. The opposite panel shows,
however, the happier termination of the par
able. The noble figure of the aged father
stands on the threshold of his home and clasps
the avertcd head of the returned Prodigal to his
breast, while he lifts his right hand and upturns
his face to Heaven in pOus thanks. The severe
simplicity OF these two umber-colored pictures
shows even more plainly than al the wealth Of
color in the central group the true merits of the
that he was decorative painter-though 4
magnificent one-only, which cannot now be
charged. The artists are unanimous in praise
of the work, and declare thai it is the finest
ever seen in this country. Those who have
been abroad say that it far snlpaSses in bril-
liancy the famous $ Marriage OF Cana" by
Neroncse, which Sumner used to say was the
grandest picture ever painted.
The subject of art has considerably enlarged
its sphere OF interest within the past year, and
particularly among younger persons than have
previously been attracted by it, A small pr-
yate club has recently been formed with the
avowed object of ''the study of art 1t is cali
ed the Da Vinci Club and has for its president
q young lawyer by the name of Washburne,
and for vice-president, Miss Susan Hale, sister
of Edward Everett Hale, and an artist and art
teacher Thnra arp alout Siytann male an,l