New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-09-20

which made the great Napoleon live again-n-
deed. 1t may be asserted that 10 Caran d'Ache
due In n great measure the revival Of the Ma
poleonic legend.
mere accident had taught the artist some
thing OF what silhouetted figures could do. He
thought the idea over. and worked necessarily. TIL
at last he evolved what was known as "rEpopee ;
that Is to say. scenes taken from Napoleons life
beginning In the year 1904, and going straight on
through the campaign of Russia In some of these
shadow pictures as many four thousand figures
were massed together indeed, Il whole army was
shown moving backward and forward across the
screen. while the figure of the Petit Caporal,'
clothed In his sombrc CLOAK and cooked hat and
mounted on his famous horse, moved slowly among
the soldiers.
Drawings OF "rEpopee' were sent by command
to the Car. who henceforward became one OF the
artists most constant patrons; indeed. much Of
Caran d'Ache's best work goes to Russia, and not
a Grand Duke but has two specimens of
his work. Each igure In "TEpopee" was drawn
cut out and pasted a zinc plate by the artist
himself and as often as not he attended the per-
formances and personally arranged and managed
each Item Of the programme There were thirty
tableaus and each detail OF the figures and their
uniforms studied as carefully as those OF the
commander himself. Among those who constantly
visited this extraordinary sight Meissoner
who expressed himself as quite astonshed at the
most successful. curiously enough. was that OF
THE Retreat from Moscow" for there strange
and extraordinary effect produced by the
great number Of figures In action. and the slow
passing the stage of men and horses. coaches
and wagons across snow-hcds and frozen rivers.
For n time Cnran d'Ache was pursued by his
own success; the public mperiously demanded
more shadow pictures. and in time he gave them
glmpses OF other. military epics. and Retour
du Bots full OF life and movement. At last he
grew frightened: the artist saw himself in danger
OF becoming the Snowman. Leaving shadowland
entirely on one side, he back to his original
kind OF work. and now ~ Epopee" IL. If not for
COTTON. scarcely remembered by those most fam-
lar with his later work. Caran dAche has been
heard to assert that he thinks lin line and he
never seems quite sure whether he ought to be
hailed as n caricaturist or a rcalis of unusual
type He is particularly happy when drawing
birds or animals. and some of his most delightful
cartoons deal with the humorous Ia chasse.'
Since his marriage to very charming Russian
girl. Caran d'Ache has forsaken Bohemia and Bo-
hemian ways He has become n citizen of Passy.
and his dainty hotel" built from plans drawn
by himself Is within two minutes walk OF the
Bots de Boulogne The studio. which IS modestly
concealed at the back of the house, IS reached
through Nine Caran dAche's Louis XVI boudoir,
and Is a very fine room. lined with simply framed
examples OF black-and-whe. He Is very eclectic
IN his tastes As is natural. Caran d'Ache has a
preat belief in the future of black-and-white, but
he shows a genuine appreciation of the coorcd art
of the hoardings and expresses special pleasure
in the work Of Cheret and of Lautrec.
or late years Caran d'Acho has set the fashion
NJ -"Albums" booklets of cartoons devoted to some
special fad. social or political. OF the moment lie
also contributes haf-page of satircal sketches to
the Figaro" once week, and. were it not that