Waterbury evening Democrat., 1894-01-10
HOCUS FOCUS IN ART.
HOW SOME PERSONS WHO THINK
 THEY KNOW ARE SWlNDLED.

Living With Pencil and Brush-Car- toonists With More Than One Name One Who Mado His Ghost Famous. Artists who sign their names to pic lures that other men paint arc quite plentiful in this town. In little store on Fourth avenue, just around the cor ner from the American Academy of De- sign. there arc some very pretty exam pies of water coloring for sale. The signature in the corner of each canvas Is that of woman. The dealer was in communicative mood the other day, and as he was talking with reporter he picked up one of tho paintings and held 1t to the light for observation and discussion.
 That woman brings some very good work in hero for mo to sell" said he. There is one peculiarity about her, though She always writes her sigma ture in my shop" The dealer paused as though to bo questioned.
 Why does she do that?" was asked.
 Well, suppose she doesn't like to put it on at the studios where tho pie lures arc painted.
 "She doesn't paint her own pictures. then2"
 Not all of them. It's easier to, pick them up here and there and bring them to me to sell 1 don't know how much she pays the artists who paint them, and don't care. It's none of my business. All know is thG& the work is very good and that can get good prices for it. suppose she is building up a reputation on the strength of these canvases. Well, why shouldn't she? She gives work to lot of people who would probably starve otherwise. You see, scores of persons can paint pictures and very few have the knack of getting them sold." Sometimes an artist signs more than one name to his own work. This hap pens every day on some of the illustrat- ed weeklies published for Broadway circulation. The publisher doesn't like to see one mans name signed to every cartoon or full page picture. He does not want it known that his staff of art ists is so small. Not long ago ono of the cleverest of the illustrators used to sign his own name to the big two page picture in the middle of the periodical and nom de plume to the first page uId" tug CNCIS "CCh. III o AltlIS " he began to receive letters addressed to tho assumed name, giving orders for work and full of compliments. He had built up reputation for tho mythical artist which he could not get for him. self. His pride was hurt, but he swal lowed the humiliation and proceeded to increase the fame and the revenue of his ghost.
 A New York artist who draws for the pictorial weeklies tells story of his experience in England at time when all the publishers were demanding French illustrators and had no use for native talent. This particular artist knew that he could cut corsages as low and skirts as high as any Frenchman that ever lived. He had spent several vacations and lots of hard earned mon- ey in seeing the particular side of Pa risian life that the publishers were howl ing for at that particular time. He assumed very Frenchy name, wrote in that language altogether and submitted his sketches, which already out-Frenched the Frenchmen in their naughtiness. He made a big hit, his mail orders were numerous, and for many months he enjoyed lucrative in come under his title of De Boulanger or whatever it was, while all the other English illustrators were drawing for the religious weeklies, which cannot afford to pay half as big prices to their artists as their more wicked and per haps more interesting contemporaries.
 In the window of picture store in co1n CH long ago two small canvases with the magic name of Corot in the corner. The price of each was $250. Now, genu- inc Corot is worth anywhere from S1, 900 up. Was it a mistake or an at tempt at swindling? The pictures were in Corot's style, and only an expert could tell whether they were genuine or not.
 The dealer would give no written guarantee. He said he believed tho two canvases were genuine, and he explain cd the low price by saying that he bought the pictures from a man ill hard luck who was ignorant of their value. The purchaser took all tho risk. If the pictures wero not genuine Corots, their real value was anywhere from~$5 to
 
 tho art business.
 There are pawnbrokers in this town who have been known to go into pie ture swindliug scheme, as moro than one credulous buyer has learned to his cost, 1t is not an iufrequent occur renee for an amateur in art to bo ap- preached with request to buy pawn ticket calling for q lot of pictures pledg- ed for, say, $10O The pictures, the stranger says, mc worth at least $250. He will sell tho ticket for $25. If the amateur buys it, he pays not only the e95 for the ticket but the $100 and in terest to the pawnbrOkcr.
 It is perfectly safe and easy meth pd of swindling. Neither the pawn broker nor the ticket seller is likely to be caught. The pictures may only be worth $10. It cannot be proved that the pawnbroker knew this or that the other man knew it, for that matter. The victim has scarcely any mode of redress. Swindles like this would not be possible but for the fact that very many men believe tlroy know all there is to be known about art, when, as matter of fact, they knew nothing at all. Or, in other words, the crop of suckers never fails, to quote the old maxim of the green goods dealer. New York World. Beg Pardon.
 Solemn Stranger-All flesh is grass.
 Deaf Man-Hey?