Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-06-23

secondhand lumber, with the rusty nails
sticking out of every plank; broken car.
! riage reposed in one corner and the guardian
of the place in another.
We aroused this last named incumbrance
and made know our mission. He sighed,
and stretching himself. clapped his hands
for some one hidden in the recesses of the
temple. A man without any coat appeared
from room on the gallery, then the two
interchanged Mexican expletives for a few
moments. Finally the man in the gallery
beckoned us on with a gesture that made
me think he was scooping something over
hand from an imaginary bank. I Inquired
of the first man if we could have cata-
logue; he said: Isl Senor," and motioned
us on; inquired again for an invoice of
! what might be stored here; this time he
patted ME on the shoulders, said Isl, 81,
Senior" and waved us toward the stone steps.
corsoled myself with the reflection that
had be iore known men speaking the same
language to talk as much at cross purposes,
and walked up into the gallery with the
deacon in the lead.
NOT PLEASING woRKs OF ART.
There were some old paintings on the
walls of these stairs, but the light was poor
and we only glanced at them. The second
man met US, smiled, unlocked door and
ushered us into room full of paintings,
under dim skylight The deacon left me
to my own resources Immediately upon our
entrance.
The exhibition, / learn in a few moments,
is not calculated to inspire cheerfulness. /
find it impossible to appreciate the art that
represents every phase and incident Of the
tor 70 ha
world has ever known, as il that life had
been totally devoid OF sunlight from the
manger to the cross. There seems to have
been a morbid desire to select for treatment
everything that is repulsive and that stirs
up ones animosity against the perpetrators
of the gross tragedy.
There is so much of this that if there is
anything eleyating within sight it is
drowned in the obnoxious surroundings.
The taunting villain whose irreverent and
cowardly soul is stamped in his coarse face
NAV possess artistic merit. This is rank
heresy in me, no doubt, but have a weak
ness that way, and could not but wonder
what prompted these productions. Was it
the ignorant demand OF the hour, or the ego
tism of the artist, or both? Sensational
stories do not rank with the pure in litera-
ture Why should sensational art take the
highest place?
For the life of me could not but wonder
why the modern lover of the beautiful
must needs go into ecstacy over these por-
trayals of degradation. l found it difficult,
looking upon what was pleasing on the
walls, to lift myself outside OF the dark
ness and the competent critic will say, per-
haps, that am unconsciously paying trib-
ute to genius. Well let it 60 at that.
ALITTLE TIPPING.
We caught sight of the guardian of the
place fitting about at intervals, but always
ready to lock the doors after u.s. The
Deacon gave him a quarter and he took us
into a room containing host of engravings,
and when we became satisfied with this,
another quarter persuaded him into another
room, oE the court, where he introduced us
to some plaster casts and marble busts.
These were cold after the colors we had
seen, and we wandered out to meet the in
cumbrance. He wore smile of invitation,
and thinking that We might wish to come
again, we made up a quarter for him, dis
covering afterward that one quarter might
have sufficed for the entire entertainment
and assured a second cordial reception.
never knew Mexican to refuse any
thing but once, and this was my first copper
coin; he looked at it and passed it to boy
in the vicinity, and the boy was happy;
when had occasion to encounter the dig
nitary again gave him half real, and be
received it with a smile. 1t was his mini
mum; when 1 gave him real be bowed
low, and a quarter produced not only
smile and q bow but q "Mucho, eratia.
Senor," we'll worth the money.