The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-02-17
EARLY GREEK ART.
PROF. CUMMINGS LECTURE AT
THE UNIVERSITY.
An Instructive Talk, illustrated
With Stereopticon Views-Prof.
Toronto to Lecture Next Tuesday
on Comets.


the University last night. The lecturer
was Professor Byron Cummings, who
gave an interesting discourse on the
excellence of early Greek art, illustrat-
ing various aspects of his subject with
stereoptieon views. The lecturer said
in part:
The term Greece has become synono-
nous with fine arts. In cultivated
circles today it is thought that educa-
ton and culture are incomplete unless
they include knowledge of Greek art.
We who live among these valleys of
the Rockies, can quite appreciate how
the Greeks, living as they did among
the hills and mountains of a promon-
tory that juts out into a sea studded
with picturesque islands, early became
lovers of the beautiful The people
who dwelt under that clear blue sky,
and in that pure sunny atmosphere
could but see manifestations of the
favor of the gods on every hand and
| through that reverence for the gods
everything that passed through their
hands became instinct with life. A
new spirit was breathed into all things;
and stone, marble and bronze took
on new forms the beauty of which men
had never dreamed.
The professor adopted the historical
ject, speaking first of the earliest
Greek civilization and the influence
the Oriental countries of Egypt had
upon the art of the cities of Asia
Minor, tracing the development of
Grecian civilization. The professor
said: From this Graeco-Oriental
period there grew up an art that en-
tirely ceased to be Oriental and be-
came distinctly Grecian. The Greek
was not a copyist he was an origina-
tor; and everything under his hands
assumed an aspect of life and vigor.
Architecture made rapid strides. The
temple of wood and metal gave place
to the stately structures of stone and
marble"
The lecturer then spoke at some
length of the history of the construct
ing of Greek temples, explaining that
it was the building of these temples
that enabled the three orders of archi-
lecture, the Doric, Ionic and Corinth-
ian, TO reach perfection. Two temples,
the temple of Zeus at Olympia, and
the Parthenon at Athens. are mas
ter pieces of the. architects skill, and
have enjoyed the admiration of all
succeeding ages.
With respect to painting Professor
Cummings said that while the Greeks
paid considerable attention to this part
Of art none of the works of the great
artists have been preserved. Our
knowledge of the exquisite quality of
the genius of the Grecian artists is
obtained from sculptured marble In
sculpture the Greeks natural artistic
taste found full sway. The browning
glory of early Greek art was reached
in the latter part of the century in
the works of Mepon and Phidias
Their representations of gods and
athletes in bronze. marble. gold and
troy fIn Nj DO nd ole Of oil
Greece"
In conclusion the professor repeated
the following lines:
Greece. thou monarch of the ages.
Thou whose ashes are sublime.
Let thy mantle float far westward,
Float to this. our western cline;
Let thy love of art. of beauty,
Permeate our lives today;
Let ii raise ennoble, gladden..
Give us light and life alwav.
Professor ]. B. Toronto delivers the
next lecture of the course next Tues
day night or the subject of Comets"
Letter Written Amid Flying Shells.
In the February Century is an art
icle on Nelson in the Battle of Copen-
hagen" by Captain Alfred T. Mahan,
who has just resigned from the United
States navy in order to devote himself !
to literary pursuits. Captain Mahan
relates the following anecdOte concern /
ing Lord Nelson's letter proposing a
truce to the crown prince of Denmark, |
dispatched in the midst of hostilities:
The decks being cleared of all parti- /
lions fore and aft, and all ordinary |
oonveniences removed, Nelson wrote /
in full view of all on the deck where |
he was. at the casing of the rudder- |
head, standing; and as he wrote an /
off cfa frac laxr n rl,ai
original. in his own hand, was put /
into an envelope and sealed, with his
arms The officer was about to use q |
wafer, but Nelson said: No; send /
for sealing-waX and candle" Some de- !
lay followed. owing to the man sent |
having had his head. taken off by a |
ball. "Serd another messenger foTs the /
wax" said the admiral when informed |
os this: and when the waters were |
again suggested he simply reiterated |
the order. A large amount of wax was
used, and extreme care taken that the |
impression Of the seal should be per-
feet. Colonel Stewart asked: why, I
under so hot a fire and after so
lamentable an accident. have you at
tached so much Importance to a cir
cumstance apparently trifling?" Had
/ made use of a wafer" replied Nelson,
THE wafer would have been still wet
when the letter was presented to the
crown prince: he would have inferred
that the letter was sent off IN a hurry,
and that we had some very pressing
reasons for being in a hurry. The wax
told no tales" 1t was the same saga
cious regard TO effect which possibly
the byplay of refusing to see
Parker's' signal of recall.
-o@
1t is impossible to make n purer or
stronger powder than Hewlett Bros