Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1888-04-18
PORTRAITS OF WASHINGTON.
Rembrnndt Pcale's Account of How the
First President Sat for his Father.

Rembrnndt Pcale's Account of How the
First President Sat for His Father.
Rembrandt Peale, tho artist who painted
tho famous, but horrible in its subject and
suggestiveness, picture, "The Court of
Death, was a son Of tho also famous Charles
Wilson Peale, who painted from personal
slttings several portraits of Washington In
recent interview he said: sslVashincton
gave sittings to Stuart and my father at the
same time, and was often with him. This
was when he was president--about 1874 He
san for my father in the quiet early morning,
before his state toilet had been made, and
when he appeared to the eyes of the charmed
observer simply as George Washington, the
man and citizen. He was then about 60
years old, and the tolls and trials which he
had passed through as the commander Of the
army, and the quite as great cares Of six
years Of the presidency, added to the weight
OF increasing years, had told with no little
severity upon his TALL stately and still impos.
ing frame and features. His somewhat thin
hair was gray; years and fears and cares
had all left traces on his face, and his teeth
being gone, the lips and cheeks and lines
about the mouth were somewhat depressed
and contracted. My fathers portrait of
him, repeated Mr. Peale, ''was exactly Of
Washington as he really was while he was
the man only, and before he had prepared
himself, as president, to enter upon his, more
especially then than now, arduous duties as
chief executive of the great but very young
republic.p
"But Why" it was asked, 'sthe two por-
traits being painted at the same time, should
Stuart's be so very unlike your father'sT'
Simply because continued Peale, s'as /
have already stated, Washington gave his
sittings to Stuart on the same day, but after
careful preparation Of his state toilet; and
he was exceedingly, almost austerely nice in
all matters of conventional dress and deport-
ment Indeed, the remove from the manners
and customs of England's monarchy was so
recent and 50 slight that the social atmos-
phere of the White House partook largely Of
the etiquette of the court, and the expected
and practiced department Of the executive
chamber was as formal in degree as that
which had been necessary i'm order TO have
audience with the king
This state toilet, among other things In
cluded the careful combing and powdering Of
the hair and the tying of it in q cue; also a
discreet make up' of the face, and. most
noticeable of all, the fitting into the mouth OF
full set of false teeth Now, the art and
skill of the dentist in those days had not at
tanned to very perfect imitation of nature,
and the plates being large and clumsy, gayo
to the mouth and whole lower portion of the
face that fat, full, square and unnatural APP
pcarance which all careful observers of
Stuarts great portrait cannot fail to observe,
and which is very often questioningly re-
marked upon. This portrait was adopted as
harmonizing more fully with the courtly
conception Of what the personal appearance
and habiliments Of one in SO great authority
should be, but as a portrait, it is of the
president rather than Of the man. and is to
be regarded as the ideal, rather than as the
real Washington IA. S. Pease in The Sara
togian.