The weekly intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1891-1901, 1899-06-24

toretto's Plight Into Egypt Rubens'
Descent from the Cross Leonardo Ia
vinci's last supper. Oauds's Queen
Of sheba," Belini's Madonna at Nj
Ian; Orcagns's Last Judgment and
hundreds Of miles OF pictures. II they
were put in line, illustrating. display
ing. dramatizing, irradiadng Bible
truths until the Scriptures are not to-
day so much on paper as on canvas not
80 much In ink as in all the colors Of
the spectrum. In 1888 forth from Stras-
burg. Germany, there came 4 child that
wal to eclipse in speed and boldness
anything and everything that the world
had ever seen since the first color APP
pearSd on the Sky at the creation. Paul
Gustave bore At II years Of age be
published marvellous Autographs Of his
own. Saying nothing Of what be did
for Milton's Paradise Lost" amblazon-
ing il on the attention Of the world. he
takes up the book Of books, the mon
arch Of literature, the Bible, and in his
pictures, THE Creation Of Light" The
Trial Of Abraham's Faith" The Burial
of Sarah" Joseph Sold by His Breth-
rem" 'The Brazen Serpent" Boar and
Ruth" David and Goliath" The
TRANSPORTATION" The Marriage In
Cana" Babylon Fallen" and eo5 Scrip
tural scenes in all. with c boldness and
a grasp and almost supernatural af-
flatus that make the heart throb and
the brain reel and the tears start and
the cheeks blanch and the entire nature
quake with the tremendous things Of
God and eternity and the dead. 1 ac-
tuAlly staggered down the steps Of the
London art gallery under the power Of
Dore's Christ Leaving the Praetori-
um." Profess you TO be Christian man
Or woman, and see no divine mission in
art and acknowledge you no obligation
either in thanks TO God or MANI
The world and the church ought to
come TO the higher appreciation Of the
Divine mission Of pictures, yet the au-
thors of them have generally been left
10 semistarvstion- West the great
painter, toiled in interpretation till,
being a great skater, while on the ice he
formed the Acquaintance Of Gen. Howe,
Of the English army, who, through
coming to admire West as a clever
skater, gradually came to appreciate as
much that which he accomplished by
his hand as by his heel. Poussin, the
mighty painter, was pursued and had
nothing with which TO defend himself
against the mob bet the artists port
folio, which he held over his head to
keep of the stones hurled at him. The
pictures of Richard Wilson, of England,
were sold for fabulous sums Of money
after his death, but the living painter
vas glad to get for his "Aleyone" a
piece of Stilton cheese From 1910 10
1913 there were 1900 pictures willfully
destroyed. In the reign Of Queen
EiiEabsth il WIS the habit of some peo-
pie to spend much of their time In
knocking pictures to pieces. In the
reign Of Charles ]. ii was ordered by
parliament that all pictures Of Christ
be burned. Painters were so badly
treated and Inundated il the beginning
Of the eighteenth century that they
were lowered clear down u of the
sublimi.y Of their art and obliged 10
give accounts Of what they did with
their colors.
The oldest picture in England, a por-
trait Of Chaucer, though now Of great
value. was picked out of a lumber gar
ret. Great were the trials Of Quentin
Matsys, who toiled on from black
smiths anvil till, as a painter, he won
wide recognition. The first mission
aries TO Mexico made the fatal mistake
Of destroying pictures, for the loss Of
which art and religion must ever la
ment. But why go SO far back when in
this year Of our Lord TO be a painter, eX-
cept in rare exceptions. means poverty
and neglect, poorly fed, poorly clad,
poorly housed, because poorly appre-
ciated? When Ihear a man is a painter,
/ have two feelings-one Of admiration
for the greatness Of his soul, and the
other of commiseration for the needs OF
his body. But so it has been in all de-
partments Of noble work. Some of the
mightiest have been hardly bestead.
Oliver Goldsmith had such a big patch
on his coat over the left breast that
when he went anywhere he kept his hat
in his hand closely pressed over the
patch. The world renowned Bishop
Asbury had a salary of S54 q year.
Painters are not the only ones who have
endured the lack of appreciation. Let
men Of wealth take under their patron
age the suffering men of art. They lift
no complaint; they make no strike for
higher wages. But with a keenness OF
nervous organization which almost al
ways characterizes genius these artists
suffer more than anyone but God can
realize.
Thereneeds to be a concerted effort for
the suffering artist Of America, not sen.
timental discourse about what we owe
TO artists, but contracts that will give
them a livelihood: for i am in full sym.
patty with the Christian farmer who
was very busy gathering his fall apples
and some one asked him TO pray for &
poor family, the father of which haC
broken his leg, and the busy farmer
said: 81 cannot stop now 10 pray, bu'
you can 90 down into the cellar and ge
some corned beef and butter and egg
and potatoes; that Is all / can do now,
Artists may wish for our prayers, bu'
they also want practical help from mel
who can give them work. You hay,
heard scores Of sermons for all othei
kinds Of suffering men and women, bu
we need sermons that make pleas TO
the suffering men and women Of Amer
lean art. Their work Is more true +
nature and life than some Of the mas
terpieees that have become immorta
on the other side Of the sea, but II is tn
fashion Of Americans to mention foreigi
artists and TO know little OF DothinI
, about our own COpley and AllstOn an
|, lnman and %Greenough and Kenset'
Let the afiluent fling ont Of their wiz
=, 1Ows and into the back yard ~valueleS
daubs on canvas and call in these spler
did but unrewarded men and tell theI
TO adorn your walls not only with tha
which shall please the taste, but ell
large the minds and improve the mora
and save the souls Of those who ga1
I upon them. All American cities nee
great galleries Of art, not only open aI
nually for a few days on exhibition, BIT
which shall stand open all the yet
round, and from early morning uni
ten o'clock at night, and free 10 ali WI
would come and go.
, What a preparation for the wear an
tear Of the day a five minutes look
? the morning at some picture that wi