The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1901-02-21
STORY OF BINGHAM PICTURE
Was a Portrait of Victoria-saved a
Home from Union Soldiers.
- 20 ~
The first pictures l can rememb,


The first pictures / can remember
were of Queen Victoria and Henry
Clay" said a man who is now % anu
is taking his ease in New York The
picture of the queen was colored
plate, a copy of the painting by Ihohi-
as Sully. How it ever got where
saw it 1 don't know
1T hung in the home of my father
who was living on the border. There
wasn't white settlement ten mics
west of his place. Indians USED 70
come to his house to swap their work
for anything they could get, and one
Of my recoIlections IS their fondnesS
for the queens picture. one OF theIh
tried to steal 1t.
The picture had quite history
later on. My father moved away from
the border and went to St Louis. soon
after a young artist came TO our mousse
to live, He became a celebrity. he
painted the Country Election ana
during the civil war he painted the
celebrated picture known in Missouri
as Order No. H. which was a COM
mentary on canvas of a military order
issued at that time which drove many
southern people out Of the state. Inc
artist was also poilJiclan' anu II /
mistake not, he was once d MEMBER
of congress, but for the life Of me
cannot recall his name.
He painted an oil from the cOlored
plate of Queen Victoria. That was
probably the best canvas of the queen
ever turned out so far west me
painting attracted attention and was
for a while on exhibition
In the civil war my father was a
confederate soldier. 1t was the Gus
tom for Union soldiers to visit the
houses of southern sympathizers in
search of cOntraband articles. a squad
went to my fathers house. The young
4 he
of the queen and took off his cap to II.
He asked my mother if she was an
English subject. An evasiYe reply
was made and the young officer po-
litely begged pardon and said that his
mother was an English woman and
that q picture of her queen in any
house meant protection to that house
50 far as he was concerned. With that
he ordered his squad away.
AT the close OF the war a number of
confederates preferred to go to Mexico,
and, as you may know, more than a
thousand, nearly all of whom had been
officers in the cOnfederacy, crossed the
border. and offered their services to
! Macmillan. Ny father was one of that
number.
Macmillan did not accept the serv-
1 ice of the eX-cOnfederates, and each
! was left to decide his own destiny
Some remained in Mexico and did well.
My father purchased a plantation near
! the capital One day several hunters
! stopped at his place and had dinner.
/ They were foreigners, and their bear
! ing proclaimed high birth.
! Zone of them became interested in
/ the painting of Victoria and bought it.
/ The purchaser offered d price far be-
yOnd its value. Besides. he said he
wished it for his wife. A few days
/ later the painting was sent for.
J Its destination at that time was not
fknOwn but some time after a former
/ confederate visited my father and in
! formed him that his painting of Queen
/ Victoria hung in the room of the EN-
/ press CarlOtta, and that her husband
! Macmillan, was the purchaser. He
was one of the party VINO had visited
my fathers plantation. OF the subse-
quent history of the painting I know
/ nothing. I would give any reasonable
sum TO get it