The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1908-04-24
A SEA PICTURE CRITIC
He Knew All About Ships and the
Wild Ocean.
ART COMMENTS OF A SAILOR
The death of Nelson" Reminded Him
of How 'Arkness Come Off the Main
Yard-The Blood Red SKY Without a
Cloud That ForeteIls a Ssorm.

" OSoAtt u INS'Soit IiiiIi
of How 'Arkness Como Off the Main
Yard-The Blood Red SKY Without a
Cloud That ForeteIls a Storm.
Crude perhaps and curious. the out
come of a life apart, s:tilormen have
yet an appreciation of TIE arts, writes
David W. Bone in the Manchester
Guardian.
Once in the Walter gallery l was
looking at. "The Death of Nelson"
There was a man with the look of a
seaman standing near. He had a slight
smell of drink and was chewing tobac-
co. He, too, was interested in the pic
ture, and. recognizing me as ANA
like, he said something, and we got to
talking about Nelson and his times,
about ships and pictures. "B'gad,
mate, them %fellers' (the painters he
meant "knowed what they was
a-doin'. Look at that ere glim" dan
term. Looks as its trimmin' was for
got Wen they brought tn admiral
down. " An them eyes," point
ing to a wounded seaman in the neal
foreground, "them's TIL eyes O. poor
'Arkpess wot come off tn main yard
las voyage an struck TIL fife rail full
on"
He told me of the accident, how it
happened. and by his eyes and rude.
simple speech l saw it all. AS plain be-
fore me as the figure Of the stricken
seaman I saw '.Arkness come of the
main yard, clutching wildly at the
sheets and lifts as he fell. I heard him
strike the rail with a sickening thud
and lie stretched. 1 saw the running
figures on the deck, and-"'e never
larsted tn night. We buried i'm out
there. Taltal it was." said my speaker.
involuntarily twisting a shoulder to an
imaginary southwest.
There was a sea picture, a ship CON-
ing up to the Isle Of wight-clean
curving sails, a good sense of move
ment and a fine, breezy atmosphere.
"Jest wot it is" said M friend,
"'omeward bound. Let 'er go, boys!"
a burst of enthusiasm that made some
visitor glance around, alarmed. come
ward bound it Isl" There were other
fine pictures. but we did not feel that
we had a right to do more than look at
them and admire. With sea pictures it
was different. They were our world.
and who had the right to criticise the
way a sea was moving off the sky if
we had not? Too often had we watch
ed, anxious eyed, for a break in the
clouds not to know the way of wind
on the water. the scud of a cloud
breaking free in q welcome shift. Well
we knew the curve of a standing sail
and the relation it bore to the sense of
movement.
For a city of the sea Liverpool has
no great representation of her fore
most industry on her chamber walls.
Sea pictures have apparently no at
traction for her chiefest citizens. There
was little call for sea critics down
stairs, so we went to an exhibition Of
modern art in the upper galleries.
Here we found ourselves properly con-
fronted. Setting Sail After a Blow it
was. a large canvas, a ship pitching
heavily in the swell Of a recent gale
and the crew putting the canvas on
her. 1t held a great message for my
mate (black smoke and an ever throb-
bling screw had not yet dulled his sea
fancy. He was highly pleased. Chem
seas wot We gets off tn Platev' He
wanted to show some word of cheer, to
swing his right hand to the left Shout
der in seamanlike admiration, but the
cold gray y Of a tall hated official
was upon us-"Huh, sailors!'-and
there was a group of young ladies
near by w%orshiping at the sli-iae Of a
corporation purchase, so he contented
4 hIYnCn1f h. y,1ersr~ -
That's wot | calls a picture L. said.
A sunset owe water claimed oar at
t%ention. A blood red sky with no
clouds, only a slight density near the
horizon. said 1t was remarkable,
perhaps unreal. That's where We
amt in 1t, mister! Look a. here! II
We wos t. take all tn colors in TIL lock-
. er SOS We lad lots O. red an yeller in,
ye'd find a sky t. match it. Amt We
never card O what them dagos calls
blood O. Chris'-them dagos wot loads
We ballest in tn rlate?" / had not
heard. well it's a sky like that, an
1t comes afore one Of them .pamperos.'
Min l wos lynn in Monte video
oncet, an we 'ad a sky all blood red
an never a cloud, an tn fishin' boats
Wos all comm IN; not row1n' sh1pshape,
same IS me an you 'ud do; them
shown tn oars s If they wos pushin'
a barrer." He spat into a dark corner
and said something more about dagos,
then continued: Mex day we 'ad a
gale. 'Owlin', it was, an her drivin'
into it same s we wos of tn Horn,
an a big German bark driv' down on
US an took tn fore to'gal'n'mast out O.
'er an tn boom an started all tn
'eadgear. Two ships wos driv' ashore,
an that's wot comes out o. them skies
wot they calls tn blood o. Chris"
1t was an impressionist picture that
annoyed my mate-an impression Of a
scene in dock, with masts and tunnels
and hulls all mixed up: The coloring
was good. but the ships might have
been ninepins or egg boxes or any
thing. At first he was perplexed. then
amused, then indignant. ooh, -" he