New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-03-01
NAPOLEON.
NJ. DAYoTs COLLECTION OF PORTRAITS

With the text Of this porty volume the re-
viewer has scarcely anything to do. AS the
title implies. IL Is picture-book. and as such IL
must be judged. 1t is an entirely Favorable I'M
preston which 1t leaves. Coming to the enrich
ment of a subject which has very nearly been
done to death NJ. Dayot. nevertheless, does
Justify his undertaking, and gathers together IN
handsome form a mass Of data for which all
students of Napoleonic personaia must DE
grateful 1t is essentially monument to per-
sonalty Napoleon in thousand changes OF
situation but with the same general features,
greets one on every page: and in the text too. he
is treated with that special touch or intimate
description which is never absent from your
true Frenchman's discourse on his best hero.
On NJ Dayot's fifth page he talks about "Thero-
Ysme du vainuueur dArcole'; few passages
further on II is 'le futur vainqueur dAuster-
ntz" Of whom he speaks-t is always lie vain
Queur.' in fact whom he remembers anu even
down to ST. Helena and the Emperor's disgrace
our author is fervent. faithful French TO the
very backbone of him. 1t would be hard to blame
him. The most patriotic Of Enghshmen couio
not help being interested by the gallery OF pct
ures sculptures medals and other objects TO
which NJ. Dayot turns for the Illustration OF MS
narrative They make a narrative themselves as
has been said and present the career of Ma
thusiasm that appeal 10 the imagination with
profound meaning.
In modern history there has been no one. save
perhaps Washington. to compete with the French
ruler for icOnographc honOrs. Washington and
Franklin have both engaged the ardor Of col
lectors to good purpose and in the future we may
expect Bismarck and Gladstone to excite similar
efforts but so far as the record has gone II has
left Napoleon frs: NJ. Davot says that 1t Is only
at the beginning of the second Italian campaign
that the figure of Bonaparte commence
rayonner sur lie monde" and he fixes November
IT, 1886 as the date Of the actual beginning OF
the Napoleonic legend in art The spirited
painting by Baron eros which hangs in the
Louvre representing Bonaparte on the Bridge OF
Arcola, fixes the physlognomy which all his
torians unite in assigning to that period, race
of lean intellectual character, framed r stiff
vet unruly hair and animated by unquenchabe
enthusiasm NJ. Dayot justly observes that Gros
arrested denitivey for posterity. in this produc-
tion the Corsican traits which associate in
stinctvely with the earlier years Of Napoleon.
with Marengo and the Eighteenth Brumaire But
the purpose of this volume is 10 go even behind
these episodes TO illustrate so far as possible the
very dawning Of Napoleon in France. NJ Dayot
has of course, practically no contemporary docu-
ments for the better understanding Of his sub
tects infancy: but he gives at least one print In
these pages which pictures lie futur Vanqueur
in childish pantaloons. hat and sash. promenad-
ing in a garden under the eye Of a most i'm
posing personage-probably his mother. BY rely
ing upon the idealistic Autographs of Raffet and
Horace Vernet the more recent paintings Of
Flameng Leconte du Nouy, Gervex and others.
he has succeeded in reconstructing the appear
ance Of NAPOLEON at the very outset of his
career Perhaps he has paid too much attention
to the latter flights Of fancy. one feels that one
would give them all for the little crayon profile
drawn by one of Bonaparte's fellow cadets at
Brienne in 1885 In this sketch. said to be the
, first portrait of Napoleon made after nature
there are certain truths of character in the
classic outline, the long straight hair and the
ambiguous expression. which convince where the
imaginary portraits do not. Yet NJ. Dayot might
retort with justice that modern men have had
many authentic relics of the Napoleonic era 70
build on and that they Lave not drawn their
hero quite 'out OF their heads" This Is true
One striking feature of this work is the unity of
impression il leaves: old and modern painters
alike seem TO have caught the aspect Of Napo-
leon broadly speaking on about the same lines
and with unimportant variations it is the same
apparition that looks out from the co lntless re-
productions here set forth. They are the same
firm lips the same exqusitely chiselled, cameo
like lines OF cOuntenance which are preserved In
Vernet's studies of Naroieons youth and Meis-
soniers picture Of his prime. For Greuze paint
tne his magnificent portrait Of "Bonaparte Lieu
tenant OF Artillery" for David depicting the
successful general of later date. for Meisso-
nler celebrating the victory Of Friedland. and
DR. Antomarchi taking the death mask at Long
wood the structural outlines of Napoeons face
and head were substantially the same This
seemingly obvious point is really deserving OF
particular comment because in most cases the
differences between various portraits OF great
man are usually vast.
1t is interesting to see how definitely. how
concsely Napoleon impressed himself not only
upon his own time but upon posterity The
most vitrioc of Old English caricatures could
not rob him of his peculiar, statuesque dignity
of aspect as witness the terrible cartoon OF Gill
raw. on page ST. a design which shows the head
of Bonaparte lifted pitchfork above the
heads of British mob The inscription on this.
by the way, is somewhat amusing in the light
of history. This is to give information 1t
,uns>-for the benefit Of all Jacobn adventures,
that policies are now offered at Loyds-where
the deposItor Of one guinea is entitled TO a
hundred II the Corsican cutthroat Is alive forty
eight hours after landing On the British coast
There is more Of similar strain on this Garcia
lure but our extract is enough to recall the
hounce in existence at the same time that genu-
tne alarm was felt over the possibility of for
e,gn invasion NJ Dayot has shown uncommon
breadth OF view for Frenchman. in the inciu-
sion OF this and other English pictures. Monsieur
Grand Carteret is the only compiler from wnon
we would have expected carcatures in any great
measure but the present author has not stinted
his audience in any direction; he has calculated
every side OF the subject he has attacked
Naturally there omissions. Mr.. richardson
Napoleonic paintings. among the very finest IN
modern art, have for some ncomprehensible rea'
son been ignored. and there are other distin-
guished painters who have been neglected. In
the main however, NJ. Dayot has CLEANED his