Los Angeles herald., 1906-04-01

vSssses&y Warus tne latter place. III was sltu-
ated at some distance from the library,
and, the house being to me, had some diff
fculty in finding it,
at last, after losing my way several times,
stood in front of the thick oaken door that 1
knew to be the entrance of the picturegallery
Half-a-dozen keys inserted into the lock
after another failed to open the door. The sew
enth caused the steel tongue to spriEs back with
sharp click.
had not taken more than ten steps when the
great door swung to its hinges with clang
that gave me a sudden start and called forth
strange echoes from the gallery
| There is nothing remarkable in the changing of
a door, if it be due merely to a current of air
or to automatic action but when neither of
these causes is in operation it is apt to create
uneasy sensation, especially when, in the pres
ent instance, it is accompanied by what sounds
very like laugh, coming it is impossible to say
whence.
I felt afraid almost to turn round to discover
the author Of the laugh, but when had turned
and could perceive nothing to justify my be-
! lief that it was a laugh was equally afraid to
turn the other way; and so stood rooted to the
spot for a few moments, not wishing to retire,
nor yet overbold to go forward
At length, despite the frowning faces OF the
portraits on the walls and the threatening lances
of the knights advanced. with one hand on
the pistol in my pocket. AS I moved before the
moonlt easements, black shape moved with
me along the floor of the hall, and when had
passed out of the moonlight, the candle L car
ried in my trembling hand caused the shadow to
start up on the adjacent wall as though 1T were
some sable familiar attendant on my movements
In the middle of the gallery, upon small ta-
BILE and reared up against the wall, could per
ceive in massive frame large picture, which
l took to be the thing I was in quest of, but
before had got near enough to obtain glimpse
of il I dropped my candle, and l was left in
darkness.
Just as was preparing to return for another
candle the moon emerged triumphantly from an
array of defiant Clouds and its light increasing
almost to the brightness of day, enabled me to
obtain clear view of the picture.
Nv first feeling one of disappointment.
What I had expected to I do not quite
know: something alarming, probably.
There was, however, nothing alarming on the
canvass before me.
| fell back pace or two to contemplate the
n,cture as whole and, despite my dislike of the
artist ! could not repress feeling OF admira-
tion for the man who had produced such mas
terpiece.
Pompey, and saw that Angelo had given his own
regular and naughty features to this figure,
which was represented being crowned with
laurel-wreath, and armed with spear and shield
The centre of this shield was set with the he'll
meted head of Minerva gem OF minute pant
|
that the face of the goddess was simply minia-
| ture portrait of Daphne.
| From the statue of Pompey l turned my at
tention to the figure at the base of the pedestal.
Angelo had not strictly adhered to the minutiae
| az history in this portion of his picture, for he
had piyen a full view of Caesars face instead of
yelling it in the folds of the toga.
The bald and beardless head of the fallen Die
tator became next the object of my study
The face had a mournful, surprised expression
the very expression of man who wltnout warn
! inc had been cut off out Of the land OF the liv-
| inc II was not however, the face that meets
rs in the coins and busts of art-galleries; it
seemed to have a much more familiar look lt
seemed face we'll known to me-one, too, that
had seen but recently.
Minute after minute passed, and still stood
there contemplating the dead face, with the Sc
cret consciousness that ere long 1 should recog-
nize IT, A sudden movement on my part to the
left. seemingly, as it were, to set the race IN
now noint of view, caused the light OF knowledge
to flash into my mind.
A loud cry broke from me, and reeieu pack
into the middle of the hall.
For nv brothers face was staring at me from
Tho canvas in lneaments not to be mlstaken-ln
lineaments so startling in their hdellty to the
original that I marveled how could have tailed
- tbe first to detect the resemblance The beard
and hair were wanting to complete the likeness;
! II was this omission that had delayed my recog-
nit;on Of the portrait sketch that Angelo had ex-
hibited to me.
Overwhelmed with amazement 1 stood staring
NJ the nicture rooted to the spot, without power
| +o move from it. Whence had Angelo derived
the marvellous art that had enabled him to linn
NV hrothers face so faithfully, and yet to trans
form Il so as to make it seem ike the very i'm
age of death;
The artists secret was revealed; he had killed
my brother
L;d.ons realism sometimes, though rarely, ex-
oronl;fed in the history of art, Angelo had muir
dered fellow-mortal for the purpose of having
| bn his side a dead man to serve model for
40 fallen Caesar even proceeding so far as to
a+a;n in his picture the very features of his vic
tim
+on+ion 10 the pen-and-ink sketch of Georges
face.
| ,oa;no his nicture | should detect any resem-
bIonce Ia nv brother in the bald and beardless
head Of Caesar; hence his satisfaction at my
want of perception, for he felt pretty certain
that il [ failed to recognize the likeness, other
nersons would be equally or more obtuse.
Yet. despite the apparent safety which my
mental blindness had promised him, he had fear
| ed after all lest the picture should betray him,
and the fracas that had occurred in the Vasari
| Gallery Mt Paris was a result of this fear.
The Indian officer whom Angelo had ordered
20 he expelled from the gallery, doubtless
| friend OF Georges, belonging, perhaps, to the
| same regiment, and who, if permitted to see the
work of art might have discovered in the same
| more than was intended by its author
Such were the thoughts that went whirling
through my mind!
|