New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-03-10
BRAINS AGAINST BEAUTY.
THE cPo1JER CLUB SHOWS THAT THEY
USED NOT TO GO TOGETHER.
WHAT WOMEN WRITER'S LOOKED LIKE rfo"
sAPPHo TO GEORGE ELIOT


"Thev,re as homeIy as hedgefences." said
pretty girl "Tll never write any poetry as ''
as 7 live II It's going 10 make me look IKE ths'.
ard sbe c,st a glance on the young man that MADE
him think he could write all the poetry necessary
for both. ,,
They were IN the Grolier Club gallery Studying
the engraved portraits 81 women writer's non'
Sappho to George Eliot. The CIR seemed a"H'o
to discover II brains were destructive OF beauty
II ore may Judge by these portraits. poetry o..-
ta.nly does not agree with 1t. for 1t wouo oe w.
0cult to assemble palmer group OF couhteha"ces
than those represented IN this collection because
their owners wrote verse. There are other ho"e"
women there, but none to compete WIN the Poe."'
The writer's OF fiction averaged far better ana ths
few historians might be said TO be good looAi"s'
bu. We must depend upon the letter writers :"
redeem the reputation for loneliness OF their sex
But whatever the answer these old PORTRAITS sa'e
10 the question Of wit and beautys reia'on' nv
argument may be drawn adverse TO the beauty OF
the cever women OF to-day. Indeed. the Hypaaias
OF the period are quite aware OF their good looms,
I, vould seem. for the collecting committee Tad
many offers OF pictures from oeautifu' women VINO
WELD the PEN before 1t vas UNDERSTOOD tha' INC
collection was limited 10 the writer's OF an earher
time Even then IT is limited, some women 0.
SIXTY wears might have been induced to permit
themselves 10 be represented py '"e'' p'
taken al sixteen. "a
These 100 odd pictures represent. perhaps LOO
different persons FOR the collection contains many
duplicates
"On.y 80 women who have been prominent s.hcs
Sappho" a saunterlng gazer Of the superior sex
says And OF all these not more than my rea.y
belong among authors The rest are women VINO
were wives OF somebody queens OF something
and wrote lone song or two IN ;heir silly uaSs.
Who ever thinks Of Queen Elizabeth as poe''
There are women authors anyway worth mem
toning. Women would better go back TO mousse
I ink
freaks"
Most OF these literary ladies died long ago.
and f: should be distinctly understood that no
thoughts they may suggest Apply In any way 70
the modern women whom every man worthy OF
the name will Of course are all at the same
limo beautiful and witty and wise This, as every
body knows Is a more perfect day than that OF lhe
Blue Stockings and 1t need cause no surprise -
their good brains and fair faces were not always
IN that uerrect harmony in which We now ma
them 49,
Earliest Of all is Slppho one OF those ie" nnes
If hers left 70 uslines perhaps more authentic than
her Observation-Disclosures: Men WILL THINK. renem-
- ~ ovo, hereafter" They have indeed; but
probably not ten Of those who will stop 10 see no"
,bo Looked ever read even that line before.
And after they study the five different portrats OF
Tho singer they are likely to have no more clear
IDEAS of her face than OF her verses. Some prints
are from statuary and SHOW prominent nose an"
ANYTHING but a classic Greek v!sage' IL i lung
lump from 600 B. {. 10 1873 A D. WHICH - Sa'"
20 have marked the birth Of Julana Berners. the
proress OF SOpewell Nunnery. near 81 ADAMS
VIII, s called the earliest English sporswoman ana
,oe,sss % the chase" Dame Juliana's appearance
does credit 10 her "Bokys' u "hauking ana iSss"
vnge" She had oval face straight nose ""u
fine eyes. vita her nuns gown ana cap S''7 VS.
extremely pretty Jane Porter was not nun ous
h ..as rrettv and o. al. her pictures shown pref
,es, IN a nuns dress. Near by is Viitaria Coohha'
b, sabastiano del Piombo. Don look at X u YOU
wan, 70 think o. her delicate flower OF l'ailah
song She is for AL the world IKE ou''"e,
daughter sight OF her skeleton aug w -.
other dav by Decorating hands would GO 'ess 10
,,os,-oy romance We don't believe in that portrait
A. all IL was d crude work OF engraving WHICH
would have made an angel look us'y
ire Is Marguerite de Valois Could she have pre-
sided over the gatherings recounted IN 'he hep-
| ,aneron.? She looks more Ike a nun than the
hunting prioress herself High cheek bones re"
we're ewes long-hooked nose-she surely was an aus
tor. rnoralst some engrayer evidently thoushe
her face and her book In keeping for in later
picture the mouth is relaxed the curves are u''ieF"
emit She is homely still. bat she might have en-
loved the reves. Aphora Behn has prom'hehs
place and must have been attractive II NOT eh're
Ia oodooking Her picture faces title pase OF
the third edition 90 her works published. be II noted
bv a woman Okscler. in l;2i IL is tine rays
written by the late ingenious Mrs. Behn. Ann
Eliza Becker who wrote poetry the last century,
"a one OF three early Americans. The other TWO are
Phfis Wheatley and susanna Royson. The pate
OF the author 81 Charlotte Temple was lost for
many years 1t was finally found among family
treasures and prints taken rom L; IL Is one
81 them that now represents susanna.
\ frightful portrait unjustly presents Mary WoH-
stonecraft II shows a hard-featured woman with
n sugar-loaf hat on one side OF the head. looking
exactly like staggering cockney. The picture
came from a woman's magazine Of her time. fer-
haps man then WAS not above frightening her sex
against her doctrines by painting her with awful
looks Tradition says she was beautiful. and other
prints bear out the story Her daughter. Mrs. Shell
/ 10y IS shown In A mezzotnt by Arlent I'd
warls who also has charming picture OF Mary
Lamb. Fanny Burneys face will be no disappolnt-
| neut 20 any lover of her "Eyelina." Alice carey
! is as gentle and sweet with her thin features as
any one could wish Charlotte Bronte never claimed
| - be- pretty bat her eyes were most winning Hans
! nah More looks II she might have instructed at
great length any number 81 i.ord atAu!S u, t ph
lady whose poetry, saws Andrew lang mas ushrpei
! The place upon village centre-tabies long occupied
! by the works OF Hannah .lOre. Maria Edgeworths
portrait Is said 10 be apocryphal. but nobody WI!
believe IL. because IT IS reay beautiful face ana
! exactly suggests her bright ana i3yeiy charactsr
! Agnes strickland is good looking she wrote history
winch does not seem 10 nave been so destructive 70
! beauty as love songs Harriet Beeeher stoves %ts
American pictures show the pleasant ma'r ,a ace
/ familiar 10 US all. but an -nsHsh print tels Oh
| woman Of youth ana grea; beauty; She was ey-
/ catlrsI Ike poor Mary Wolls t0necraft Conversely
/ a woman not popular in America was Mrs Iroi-
! lopr she u fCplrSttAtl ~ ~. -
.yes ard mouth were large and she looks comforta-
bic ard intelligent. not AZ all the spiteful tae,oear-
rr that the people OF whom she wrote pretended 70
believe her bys;lnder at IN" exhibition sald they
/ really knew she told the TRUTH ana save TINS IN
/ stance coming from an eyewitness: some years
after the publication Of her book man In the 'front.'
row ~ the balcony % N"w- ork theatre removed
his coat and hung the rail Thereat the people
/ I'm the pit shouted ~ Trollope Trollope The
; offender lcecly put his coat and the audience
/ rested assured hat foreigners should have no
: chance to be critical ,
Mime de- StaH must have been exceedingly honey.
/ An outline drawing OF "A side view shows a more
. Than usually ugly face with protrudng lips Eliza
! ,nok I'm one OF several pictures, leans over tho
mothers old armchair and sings II love II. love
n 7" with "A most sentimental expression. But Chris
4 tina d. Psan appears more remarkably occupied,
/ AZ desk in about the year 1890. whlC
: Is.l. - -Ar.Arlr ,