Mohave County miner. [volume] (Mineral Park, A.T. [Ariz.]) 1882-1918, 1890-09-20
A COMPOUND MODEL.

Of tho good old type so dear to roman
cisfs and farce writer's inasmueh as
she knew great deal more about
Payne Grey's business than he did him
self. made his house her happy hunt
ing ground. and got to be almost as
much disliked by her own daughter as
by her daughters husband.
Payne Grey was an artist. and. 10
comparison with his brother-in-law,
Hamish McLatchet, could hardly be
called successful artist; for. whereas
the latter painted the portraits OF more
or less distinguished ladies or gentle.
men at $500 head--or, to be more
correct, accurately reproduced their
dresses and suits and furnished them
with new faces at that price-Payne
Grey, was content 10 take his scenes
from the life Of the masses; and every
body knows which OF iae two lines Of
art Is the more successful In these
DAYS.
So long as his mother-in-law did not
push her interference into the domain
Of his studio, Payne Grey trained him.
self into an indifference to her med.
ding elsewhere. She might arrange
his tables for him when he gave his
little dinners, and eyea 20 so far as TO
revise his list of guests: she might
teach his d0mestics their dutiesg or
give emphatic opinions upon his choice
of pictures, or bric-a-brae. or presents
for bis wife. He suffered all this foI
the sake Of peace and ouictncss; but up
till now he bad beel absolute monarch
In his studio.
One unfortunate morning. however,
Nrs. McLatchet happened to read in
the newspaper paragraph headed
''Disgraceful Conduct of an Artists
Model. from which il appeared that o
female member OF community usually
remarkable for responsibility and hon
esty, imagining herself badly treated
by her employer had wound up q
mornings sitting BY putting her um-
brella through her own counterfeit
presentment and cutting the eve Of the
artist open with the ferrule of her
weapon.
This gave Mrs. McIatchet the cue
for new attack She roundly abused
the fraternity Of models in general and
the female model in particular. She
quoted instances Of guileless young
artists being luTed to peTdition by frail
bat fair Desdemonas. Rebeccas. and
puritan maidens. She warned her
daughter Of the risk she was running
in allowing her husband 10 pass long
hours of each day in the company OF
women who were, to use her own
phrase, in the majority Of cases no
better than they should be. She held
up her own son. Hanlish McLatchet.
as an instance Of young man who
was successful without having recourse
20 the aid Of hireling beauty of face
and symmetry of figure; and she de
plored Payne Grey's preference for .
line OF art which she declared TO be but
q remove above the ig1oble.
The world Of art in which my
Hamish lives and breaihes, she said,
sis one of refinement ard culture l
would gladly consent to sit down at
table beside any lady or gentleman
he has painted during the last ten
years. Your husbands world Is that
OF the pothouse and the servants hall"
Now, Hamish McLatehet was good
fellow, and sincerely pitied poor Payne
Grey. with whom be had maintained
an unbroken friendship ever since they
first met. To him Payne Grey con.
hded his latest trouble. and, after a
quiet dinner together one evening they
agreed. by fair means or foul Mother
in-law McLatehet's persecution must
be put to an end.
Payne Grey wanted to avoid an open
row for the sake of Mrs Payne Grey,
who was quiet, kind-hearted little
body, DESTROYS of living at peace with
all mankind. That there was anything
between her son aud her son-in-laW
Mrs. McLatchet never dreamed.
Meanwhile the two artists were hard
Mt work for the then approaching
academy exhibition.
.'Well, dear, said Mrs. McIAtchet
one day TO her daughter. ''aRd how Is
Payne getting on? | sincerely hope
that he has turned over a new leaf.
and that we shall see his signature no
more appended TO representations Of
bold-faced hussies, dancing~girls, and
such like. My Hamish ia sending UP
q 'Rosalind 10 Arden'--a most beauti-
ful face and figure / believe it to be;
and. although / don't know the lady.
he assured me that il was an excellent
likeness"
''Payns's picture has something TO
do with English rural life, | think"
said her daughter--''a fair or some
thing of that kind"
"Deari dear! dear!n exclaimed Mrs.
MeLatchet. "Will he never soar above
that7 Pray what is there elcyating OF
refined in a country fair? IL he be
true TO Eature--and do him the credit
TO believe that he generally is-he viii
hardly associate q Safurnalia of the
masses with much refinement"
Full Of these ideas Mrs. McLatchet
the following morning started off for
her soo-in-law's studio. Payne Grey
opened the door himself, and her quick
ears at once detected rustic of gar
ments which seemed to proclaim pre-
cipitate fight on some ones part.
Then her glasses were fixed upon a
large canvas, which represented. ~
her daughter had limited, an English
rustic festival with the usual accessor-
les Of fiddler, beer-barrels, dancing
youths and damsels, the white-haired
squire, the Elizabethan house in the
back aground. etc The central figures
were four in number--two men and
two girls-the latter not remarkable
for beauty. but graceful and easy in
attitude.
We'll. mother. and what do you
think Of it?r asked Payne Grey.
.'Tbe picture is well enough in its |
way. Payne" replied the lady. ''bu.