Springfield globe-republic. (Springfield, Ohio) 1884-1887, 1886-07-29
ROSA BONHEUR'S YOUTH.
IN A SEWING ESTABLISHMENT TO
BECOME A sEAMSTRESS.

An Unhappy Girl at School - Draw
ing Caricafures of the Toachers-Copy-
ing the Works of the Old nIasters-The
Artist at II.
In a simple home in Paris could have been
seen in 1879 Raymond Bonheur and his little
family-RoSa, years old, Auguste, ISadore
and Juliette He was a man Of fine talent in
painting, hut obliged TO spend his time i'll Civ
ing drawing lessons to support his children
His wife, Sophia, gave lessons uu the piano,
going from house to houS,. all ,lav long and
sometimes sewing half the night to earn a
little mora for the nec,s,lti,s of life
Hard work and poverty s,on bore its usual
fruit and the tired young mother died in
lSSI The three eldest children went to board
with plain woman, LA Mere Catherine ' IN
the Champs ElyseeS, and the Youngest was
plac,si with relatives For two wears the
good woman cari for the chillrun. a,ndng
them TO school. though she was greatly
troubled because Rosa persisted in PLAYING in
the woods of the BoiS de Boulogne, gathering
her arms full of daisies and marigoldS, rather
than 10 Ike shut up in schoolroom. Il never
spent an hour Of fine weather indoors during
the whole of the two years" she has often
said since those DAYS.
Finally the father married again and
brought the children home The two bows
Were placed in school and Mr. Bonheur paid
their way by giving drawing lessons three
times a week in the institution. If Rosa did
not love school, she must be taught something
useful, and she was accordingly placed in
sewing establishment IL become a SeamStreSS.
The child hat Il sewing, ran the needle into
her fingers at sery stitch, cried for the fresh
air ami SuinShI Ie and finally becoming pale
and SiCkly wcs taken back to the Bunhcur
home. The anxious painter would try his
child once more i'll school; 50 he arranged
that she should attend, with compensation
met in the same was as for his bows. Rosa
soon became a favorite with the girls at the
Fauborg st Antoine school, especially be
cause she could draw such witty caricaturas
of the teachers, which she pasted against the
wall with bread Chewed into the consistency
Of putty The teachers were not pleased.
but ~ struck were they with the vigor and
originality of the draw ingS that they carefully
preserved the sketches in an album
AN UNHAPPY GIRL
The girl was far from happy. Naturally
sensitive, As what poet or painter was ever
born otherwise, she could not bear 10 wear n
calico dress and course shoes and eat with an
iron spoon from a tin cup when the other
girls wore handsome dresses and had silver
mugs and spoons. She grew melancholy,
neglected her books and finally became so i'll
that she WAS obliged 10 I've taken home
And now Raymond Bonheur very wisely
decided not TO make plans for his child for
a time. hut >ee what was her natural ten
dsnCy. 1t was well that he made this de
CiSion in time before she had been spoiled bv
his we'll meant but poor intentions Left to
herself she constantly hung about her
fathers studio. now drawing, now modelling.
copying whatever she saw him do She
seemed never 10 be tired, but sang at her
work all the day long
Monsieur Bonheur suddenly awoke to the
fact that his daughter had great talent He
began In teach her carefully to make her &C
curate i'll drawing and correct in perception.
Then he sent her to the Louvre to copy TIE
works of the old masters. Here she worked
with the greatest industry and enthusiasm,
not observing ANYTHING that was going ON
around her Said the director of the Louvre.
Il have never seen an example of such appli-
cation and such arior for work"
One day an elderly English gentleman
stopped beside her easel and said: Your copy,
my child. is superb, faultless, Persevere as
You have begun and prophesy that YOU will
be great artist" How glad these few words
made her She went home thinking over 10
herself the determine ion she had made i'll the
school when she ate with her iron spoon, that
sometime she would be as famous her
schoolmates, and have some Of the comforts
of life.
COPYING THE OLD MASTERS.
Her copies of the old masters were soon
sold, and though they brought small prices,
she gladly gave the money to her father, who
needed it now more than ever His second
wife had two sons when he married her, and
now they had a third. German, and every
cent that Rosa could earn was needed TO help
support seven children. Ia Mamiche," as
they called the new mother, WAS an excellent
manager of the meager finances, and flied
her place well
Rosa was now Il, loving landscape, his
torical and genre painting, perhaps equally,
but happening TO paint goat she was so
pleased in the work that she determined 10
make animal paintings a speciality. Having
no money to procure models, she must needs
make long walks into the country on foot to
the farms She would take a piece of bread
in her pocket and generally forget to eat it
After working all day she would come home
tired. often drenched with rain, and her shoes
covered with mud.
She took other means to study animals. In
the outskirts of Paris were great abattOirs or
slaughter pens. Though the girl tenderly
loved animals and shrank from the sight Of
suffering, she forced herself to see the killing
that she might know how to depict the death
agony on canvas. Though obliged TO mingle
more or less with drovers and butchers no in
dignity was ever offered her. As she sat on
a bundle of hay with her colors about her
they would crowd around to look at the pic
ture and regard her with honest pride. The
world soon learns whether a girl is in earnest
about her work and treats her accordingly.-
Sarah X. Bolton.
NEW ORLEANS FRENCH MARKET.
-E, a.. f.ns ~ fIasaF Fra.