Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-03-10
THAT WASHINGTON PORTRAIT.
Alleged to BE One Of the Three Replicas By
Gilbert Stuart.

Alleged to BE One Of the Three Replicss By
Gilbert Stuart.
Under date January %, 1892. Mr.. Sherman,
consul at Liverpool, wrote to the Secretary OF
State transmitting photograph Of q portrait
OF Washington. II inclose herewith" he said,
"a photograph of portrait of Washington be-
heved to be one Of three replicas by Gilbert
Stuart from his original painting for the Mar
quis Of Lansdowne, and also believed to be the
iden teal portrait that was intended for the
Executive Mansion. The portrait is owned by
Mr.. William Burrows Of the Isle of Man and il
for sale at the price Of f1 1000" Accompany
ing Mr.. sherman's dispatch were clippings
from several English papers. all to the same
purpose. One from the Whitehall Rerier,
July 4. 1891, says: "A more than usual
interest attaches to the portrait OF
George Washington by Gilbert Stuart, the
American painter, which has recently been dis
covered in the Isle of Man by Mr.. W. Bur-
rows, the well-known picture dealer. As is
familiar to lovers of art Lord Lansdowen COM
missioned Stuart to paint him portrait of the
first President of the United States, which
portrait Is at present in the possession Of Lord
Roseberry. Stuart, however, is known to have
painted some replicas, and Of these the Isle Of
Man portrait is unquestionably one of the best.
1t possesses an interesting pedigree IN the fact
that 1t formerly belonged to Mr.. Breed, a WELL
known Bostonian, who at one time owned Breed
Islands, Boston Harbor. U. s. A, and whose
memory is immortalized in the well-known en-
gsgement at Breeds Hill. Mr.. Breed settled in
the Isle of Man, where his daughter, the late
Mrs. j. C. Tobin Harrison, married and lived in
a house known as Mount Vernon, the name, it
will be remembered. of Washington's home.
Here, since the beginning of this century.
Stuart's picture has reposed undisturbed and
forgotten, till the death of the lady referred to
brought the work, together with a collection Of
Dutch paintings, to the hammer"
The authenticity of the Stuart portrait
in the White House is questioned by the
English paper Black and White in the issue
of September IL. 1891. where the Burrows por-
trait is described the long missing one of the
three replicas by Stuart. The original, it says,
and two of the copies well accounted for,
but the third disappeared. The committee
charged with furnishing the White House
bought the third. but it was according to the
English paper intrusted to one Winstanley to
pack and deliver who copied it, delivered the
copy and fled to England with the original. 1t
is this original portrait that Mr.. Burrows claims
to have in his possession.
Under date of February T. $685. Consul Sher
man reported to the Department of State that
Mr.. Burrows was willing to loan the portrait
for exhibit at Chicago part of the govern
ment's display, but for various considerations
the Secretary of State decided not to accept the
loan. The portrait hanging in the White House
Is too fine a production to be a spurious copy,
as alleged by the English paper. The Secretary
Of $ tate naturally desires to avoid any action
that would tend to cast doubt on the anthem
ITCHY of that painting.