The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1898-01-23


interrupted by anything but praise was
in the outburst.
Holy Moses" l gasped Give
man a chance to get his breath. / fall
through dark antechamber, over bicy-
Gle, stumble round screen, and smack!
q glare of oriental sunlight from 81
gantic canvas, the vibration and glow
of a group of joyous figures rocking with
life and sweat. /. you the idealist, the
seeker after natures beautiful moods
and Arts beautiful patterns!'
Beautiful moods!'' he echoed angrily.
And why isn't this beautiful mood
And what more beautiful pattern than
this-look! this line, this sweep, this
group here, this clingng of the children
round this mass-all in glOw-balanc-
ed by this mass of cool shadow. The
meaning doesn't interfere with the pat
tern, you chump~
"Oh. so there is a meaning! You've
become an anecdotal painter!"
"Adiectives be hanged! | can't talk
theory in the precious daylight. If you
can't see"
Il can see that you are painting some
thing you haven't seen. You haven't been
in the East. have you?"
IF | had. | haven't got time to jaw
about it now. Come and have an alb
sinthe at THE Cafe Victor in memory OF
old Paris days-sixth Avenue-any of tine
boys will tell you. Let me see, daylight
I'LL six-half-past six. Au 'voir, an
vciir'
As / went down the steep dark stairs,
Same old DAN" | thought. who
would imagine | was a stranger in New
York looking up an old fellow-struggler
on his native heath? If | didn't know
better, / might fancy his tremendous sue
cess had given him the same opinion of
himself that America has Of him. But
no. nothing will change him: the same
furious devotion to his canvas once he
has quietly planned his picture, the same
obstinate conviction that he is seeing
something in the only right way! Aud
yet something has changed him. Why
has his brush suddenly gone East? Why
this new kind of composition crowded
with figures Jews, too? Has he
been taken with piety, and is he going
hencefOrwards oStenstatiously to pro-
claim his race? And who is the cheerful
central figure with the fine open face !?
| don't recollect any such scene in Jew
ish history-or anything so joyous. Per-
haps it's study Of modern Jerusalem
Jews, TO show their life is not all Wall
ing Wall and jeremiah. Or perhaps it's
only decorative. America is great on de-
coration just now. No. he said the pic
ture had meaning. WE'LL / shall know
all about it tonight. Anyhow, it's a
beautiful thing"
Same old Danr' / thought even more
decisively as, when / opened the door of
the little cafe, a burly, blackbearded
figure with audacious eyes came at me-
with a grip and slap and roar of well
come, and dragged me to the quiet cor
Ier behind the Billiard tables.
I've just been opalizing your absinthe
for you," he laughed as we sat down.
but what's the matter? You look kind
o. scaredr'
Its your Inferno of a city. As
turned the corner of Sixth Avenue, an
elevated train came shrieking and rumb-
ling. and a swirl of wind swept screech-
ing round and round, enyeloping me in
whirlpool of smoke and steam, until.
dazed and choked in what seemed the
scalding effervescence of a collision,
had given up all hope of ever learning
what your COMPOUNDED picture meant"
''Aha!' He took complacent sip.
1T stayed with you, did it," And the
his rugged features, showed when :t
waned how pale and drawn they were
by the feverous tension of his long days
work.
Yes, it did. old fellow l said affec-
tionately. The joy and the glow of it,
and yet also some strange antique SIM
piicity and restfulness you have got into
it. / know not how, have been with me
all day, comforting me in the midst of
the tearing, grinding life of this closing
nineteenth century of Christ"
A curious smile fitted across Dams
face. He tilted his chair back, and rest
ed his head against the wall.
here's nothing that takes me 8
much out of the nineteenth century after
Christ" he said dreamily, "as this little !
French cafe. 1t watts me back to my
early student days, that lie somewhere |
amid the enchanted mists Of thefvouth o |
the world; to the zestful toll of the
studios: to the careless trips in quaint |
gray Holland or flaming, deyil-may-care |
Spain. All, what scenes shift and shut |
fie in the twinkle of the gas-jet in this |
opalescent liquid-the hot simmer Of
the arena at the Seville bul-fight. with |
its swirl of color and movement; th |
forchlight procession of pilgrims round |
the church at Lourdes, with the one
black nun praying by herself in a shad
owy corner; the lovely valley OF the Tau /
ba. where the tinkle OF the sheep-belIs !
mingles with the Lutheran hymn blown
to .e four winds from the old church
tower; wines that were red; sunshine
that was warm, mandolins" His voice
died away az in exquisite reverie.
4 good -natured smile d;ssipated his de |
licious dream.
"And the East?' / said slyly.
"Ah." he said. "My East wasl
Tyrol."
''The T'yrol! How do you mean:"
Il see you won't let me out of that
story"
ooh, there's story. is there"
"Oh. well. perhaps not what you liter
airy chaps would call story. No love-
making in it. You know"
"Then it can wait. Tell me about your
picture"
''But that's mixed up with the story
Didn't | say you had become an anec-
dotal artist"
'Ifs no laughing natter" he said
gravely. You remember when we part
Il