Evening star., 1909-06-05

Cleveland, Ohio, upon which
Mr.. F. D. Millet has been
working for the past six or
eight months, are now virtually COM
pleted, and invitations have been issued
to a private view to be held at the studio,
old Forrest Hall, Georgetown. Thursday
afternoon There are thirteen of these
paintings. each fifteen and a half feet
long by four and a half feet high, and
they are to be placed in the great ro-
tunda of the building, forty feet above
the floor. They form a complete series
which illustrates the opening of the mid
die west by the pioneer. The first pic
lures three Vikings in a boat. approach
ing the new land. THE Discovery: the
second represents ''The Settlement, and
shows a Puritan preaching beneath
tree to some of his fellow-settiers; the
third shows La Sale discovering the Ohio
river; the fourth illustrates Exploration
by Land and pictures two white men be-
ing guided by an Indian across broad
picture Of Father Henepin standing on
the high shore overlooking Niagara Falls;
the sixth again. represents exploration,
but by water rather than by land.
Indian acting as guide; next comes mi
grafton" and two pioneers are seen
trudging behind q prairie schooner"
which is carrying their household goods
pictures the settlers buying land of the
Indians, and the ninth represents Moses
Cleveland with his transit and aid sur
veyjng the land. In the tenth there is but
one figure, man "felllng the forest,
which has taken on autumnal tints. Next
is illustrated the work of building the log
cabin, after which, and lastly. come
Flowing the Land and Gathering the
Harvest" the first representing a yoke OF
oxen drawing a plow held by stalwart
farmer, and the other triumphant scene
when the full ears Of yellow ripened corn
are being garnered. 1t Is remarkable
series. historical, and at the same time
pictorial. The compositions are simple,
the treatment frank and direct. Strong
oolors have been used and there Is, dis
tinct virility in the brushwork. sthough
technique does not intrude itself and the
scheme as q whole has been made har-
monious In almost every instance the
pigment has been laid on fatty as
possible and the color held In broad. am
pie masses, which conduce to strength In
effect. 1t Is, moreover. the splendid
craftsmanship which signifies. the bold
outlines and the faultless construction.
The same types are used throughout the
series to represent the pioneer-types
which may well be accounted representa-
tive. The landscapes. which have been
chosen as settings. are also interesting
and peculiarly characteristic. AS mural
paintings the test will come when these
paintings are in place In the new build
ing, which, by the way. stands as another
witness to the fact that the business men
of America are beginning to recognize the
worth of good art and to understand that
utility and beauty are not incompatible,
but as a record Of a great period in the
history of the nation they inherently man.
ifest their worth.
In the "Reminiscences OF Augustus Saint
Gaudens," edited by his son, Homer Saint
Gaudens, in the current number Of the
Century Magazine, some interesting facts
are given concerning the Adams memorial
In Rock Creek cemetery, which by many