The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-01-14

A yiolen, slamming Of the door announced Nil
laiss departure. and his determination never TO
enter the house again. The two mndo II UP,
however. later on. Thomas agreed TO increase
the pay N $3.50 a year, and. for a abort melonge
Millais continued 70 work for him,
II.
Ho man Hunt has recorded that II WAS In tho
beginning oi the year i948 that Millais and hs
determined TO adopt the style Of absolute indie
pendence a. 70 art dogma and convention. This
he called pre- RAphaelieism. Dante Gabriel
Roas-tu was already Hunts pup and II seemed
certain that 10 also In time would work on tho
same principle. The friendly intercourse, how
eycr, between Mn ats and D.. G. Kossctti. lasted
only four years, namely, from 1913 to 1852 From
the las, named year to 1854 they met occasionally,
but after that. came rarely into contact, and,
In 1850 even casual meetings ceased. Mlllats
himself has pointed out that the only ono Of my
pictures that | con think Of a. showing the In
fuence OF Rosse,ti IL tho Isabella, In which some
OF the IN were worked out in accordance
With the book OF mella,val costumes which he
was kind enough to lend me" Millais went on
10 say that 1T was Hunt not Rossetu. whom |
hnbitually consulted In casr OF doubt. He was
nv intin ate friend and companion; W. wers work
Ing together then. and constantly criticized each
others pictures" There & no doubt that Millais
hated humbug, and. II Rossetu had been tho
guiding spirit Of his work. A. certain critics al.
legged, he would have been the irst 10 say 70.
The author Of this biography directs attention
20 another mistake made by critics, In assuming
that the pre-. I,1phaelite movement owed It's origin
70 Ruskin. Max Nordau. for example, attributes
the foundation Of the brotherhood 10 the teach
ings OF Russin. when. asa matter Of fact, Hol-
man Hunt and Milais were pre-Raphnelitcs BE-
fore Ruskin ever wrote a line on the subject
At the Academy ono o. Ruskin's ad-
mirers lent Hunt a copy Of Modern Paint
ers,'' and Hunt read 4, with enthusiasm, as
partially ombodying his own prcconceivcd ideal
Of ART. Millais. however. when asked 10 read
the work, refused 10 do ~, aging he had his own
ideas. and convinced Of their soundncss, should
carry them out regardless OF what any man might
saw. We have Holman Hunts authority for
the statement that Millais was never for a momen,
Influenced by Ruskin's teachings Ruskin, it
Is true, held Millais up az tho shining light o'
the pre- Raphaelites, and explained his pictures
10 the multitudes according to tho critics own
ideas That, Of courss, proves nothing with
regard TO Millais's attitude toward Ruskin To
ward the close 81 his life. when a friend brough,
20 Milais's notice Max Nordnu's assertion that
Ruskin was the moving spirit Of the pre-Raphael.
ties In their early days, he Indignantly denied
II, and wrote q letter in which he characterized
Nordau's remarks as "twaddling rubbish on 4
subject about which he knows absolutely moth
ing" Here we v mention III" ''.rious fact
that the pre- RaphaAlite brsthsrhocd neither
smoked, drank or swore, and that At a period
when, according 10 1hhckersy, oil Bohemia
was saturated with tobacco, spirits and quaint
oaths. Millais, however, after attaining his arti.-
ITO puberty" A. he called II, came 70 regard tho
PIPE Of peace a. a friend ard CONSIDER wber he
was wcll-nigh distraught with his work
The first big work in which Mllais threw down
the gauntlet 70 the critics was Lorenzo and lisa
bella, the subject of which was taken from Keats's
paraphrese Of Boccaio's story. Holman Hunt
called IL the most wonderful picture in tho world
for a lad OF twenty. but many ot the critics spoke
OF Il in terms NJ qualified approval, and by the
general public II waslooked upon As = Joke. Only
two members Of tho Royal Ara irnS Council
considered his next picture, Christ In the Carpen-
ter Shop" entitled 10 q favorable consideration
Even Charles Dickens, who, Aterward, became
q firm friend Of Millns. denounced this painting
a. mean, odious. revolving and Yepulstve.' The
picture was sold, however, Tor $50 TO q dealer
named Farret, whosa confidence in the young
artist was displayed by placing on the back Of
the canvas all tho adverse criticisms that ap-
peared. ferdinand Lursd by Ariel, painted
In lS<o, had, at hrst. an unlucky fate. The
dealer for whom II Was made. for an agreed price
OF cl00. refused 10 take II. and when, later on,
II WAS exhibited az the Academy, now the National
Gallery. II was ignominously placed low down
in a corner Of one OF the long rooms, Not long
afterward. however, Richard Ellison, a well known
connoisscur, was brought 10 the young arts, s
studio, and gave $3.50 for the picture. II has
been since sold for a far larger sun.
II was In 1851 that Mariana in the Moated
Grange" wns exhibited, The canvass bore the
following quotation from Tennyson's well known
poem.
She only said my Ne 10 dreary-
lie cometh not shs said;
sbo sal i. l An awaary, aweary
would that / were dead
The picture represents Mariana rising To her
full height. and bending backward with half.
cloeed eyes. She Is weary Of all things, includ-
ing the embroidery frame which stands before her.
Hr dress Of deep rich blue contrasts with the
red orange color Of the scat beside which she stands,
In the front Of the hgure Is a window Of stained
glass. through which may BE- seen a sunllt garden
III Nouh ~ VIZ hli5 ~ FF Ol III llElk
Of the picture, an oratory, In the dark shadow Of
which a lamp Is burning. This picture was sold
TO a dealer for cl50. We are told that, during
the execution Of the work. Millais came down one
day and found that things were a. a stnndstill.
owing TO the want Of a model 10 paint from lie.
naturally. disliked being stopped in his work,
but the only thing he could think Of WAS To sketch
IN the mouse that
Behind the mouldsrng wsinsoot shrtetsd,
Or from the crevioe peered about,
But where was the mouse TO paint FROM Millais's
father, who had lust come in, thought Of securing
the country In search OF one, but, at that moment,
an obligtng mouse ran across the floor and hid
behind q portfolio, Quick as lightning, Nillats
gavo the portfolio a kick, and. on removing 4,
tho mouse WAS found dead, In the best possible
position for drawing Il
II seen. that more sketches wrrp made for Mi.
lhis' = picture OF the ~Hugucnot- than for any others
Of his works His son has a number CT these
sketches In his possession They show tina, the ar
lists iirst ldeawas TO put other figures in the picture;
two priests holding up the crucinx Ia the Iiusuenot,
whose sweetheart, likewise, adds her persuasion.
Other drawings show a priest on either side q the
lover, holding up one Of the great candles Of tho
Roman Catholic Church, which the rr9testan,
waves back with a gesture Of disapproval These
ing To the simplicity Of TIE pa,hos which MARKS
his final choice Of subject The scene, II will
be remembered, is supposed 10 take place on the