New-York tribune., 1903-04-18
LADIES DAY" AT GROLIER.
F. Hopkinson Smith Draws Picture Of
Home Comfort.

Mature is never picturesque until she has been
roughly handled by man. and has outgrOwn the
usage" said F. Hopkinson Smith. In his address
before the Grolier Club yesterday afternoon on
THE Quality of the Picturesque
1t was ladies day" at the club, and more than
TWO hundred guests app1auded the speaker. 1T
is an unpardona ble shock 10 Natures good taste
continued the artist-auJhOr Ito. for instance, re
Pair or-more terrible still-whitewash one OF
those soul refreshing old gray worm fences with
which Nature has blessed farm lands. The van
dal with scythe and bucket, who mows the cling
ing vines their angles and daubs the delicate
tints that have required seasons to perfect would
be in my opinion capable of any crime even 10
that Of boiling peach"
The sneaker admitted the difficulty OF defining the
picturesque Of ''Iassoing the subtle quality"
as he expressed It '"Often.' he said, all the
called laws Of beauty transgressed in the pict-
uresque Perfect. unaIloyed beauty is monotonous
In time Pieturesqueness is spicy. suggestive. in
spring It a really spiritual quality There Is
no doubt that Nature abhors vacuum but there
is even ampler proof that she detests q straight
line In all Venice. the picturesque, forever III
spring parts Of Venice. there are not, think. any
two lines quite plumb quite parallel Even II our
everyday life il IS possible. l think. from our
cosey homes to bare and business-swept
officers to have the picturesque about as. Yet
take oar drawing rooms. Is there any oyerruIng
necessity TO furnish them in the Empire style?
There is I grant you. a certain gaudy grandeur
about the gay silk trappngs or lunoaEo pro-
ducIng sofas and the right augled triangied tour
legged affairs called chairs. but there is 20 my
mind little that IS beautiful nothing remotely
picturesque. Such furnishings have certain Fon-
fafnt beau that suggests royalty, but there Is
about as much comforu-soul, ii l may say So
as ia q crude gingerbread shanty oy the side OF
a newly laid railroad. But if you sweep out your
artificial trappings shy few books on the broad
table hang up almanac by the chimney place,
drag in d few Of your -grand1notners chairs
rom the garrett persuade cog 10 80 70 sleep on
lie hearth break up the rigidity ana Jet the broad
sTre of comfort glow every side, then you nave
home place with some soul IN II, a place pct
Ia 'sUeakin< OF the so-caIled restoration of old
churches Mr.. Smith saiG that the souls or the
~1en n ho did these things, putting green and
I-rfI. raw SILK errors in the place of the artistic
tar.a~s of a hundred seasons ought 10 90 pen
~ il, ilTgaIory for their spiritual blindness until
- s91uS and storms of nature had melioWsd the
{11dso4Isness OF their deeds
a. Smith was introduced by Howard Mansfield
Mo after the address. made the suggestion that
rpe snea ker's ideas theE given be reprinted IN
s,.zrvf language and distribute j among those VINO
.-eee beauty and know Il not ano are fnere-
fcra given TO criminal restoration
exhibition OF SILVER. gotd ana elliDr1s'te eu
r,1. l,iua{r,s owned b.. L4eluhfFs o. me OEIo-ltt
Nah was opened yesterday. snd VIII remain 20:
some weeks. The reception COMMITTED ihcI4aTd Iitg,
the uameS OF Mrs. Arthur II. 5cTioner, Mrs. VIII
iam II Bliss Mrs William l. Andrews, MRS EfoH-
srd Mansfield Mrs. Thomas @ Evans MIS- "a z
II AsIcher Mrs Rohsrt Hoe and Miss AaFsmsysr-