New-York tribune., 1910-11-06

OF the painters frank reFeidllOH OF the duFen-
titious manner In which it got itself put to-
gether, and we trace it's success to nothin,
more nor less than Vedders sincerity
In this natural fashion he has done all his
work and lived his life There is something
very refreshing about his unpretentiOus recOl-
lectons Here is no pompous talk about art.
here dark hints of experience grand.
gloomy and peculiar In fact. the author says
next to nothing about the secrets Of his work
shop. and when he does speak out it is with
neither conceit nor false modesty Abiding to
his early days In Paris he says: Had I
fallen in with some of the American students
OF Couture 1 might have gone there and gotten
over faithful but fddling little way of draw
ing which hangs around me yet" A little later
on he remarks that lat Venice absorbed color
like sponge, for started a colorist. strange
as 1t may to some.'' and he adds con
fession OF lively interest to those who have
wondered why he has never shaken off a
tain leathery and opaque quality in his painting;
Il commenced with great love of color and a
strong sense OF the Solidity of form. but draw
ing killed the color and atmosphere weakened
the form and reduced me to what am" There
is little else in this book to assist ANALYSIS of
his traits artist. We note particularly
the absence of anything throwing light on the
awakening and development of the one gift that.
above all others. has Won him distinction his
genius for design.
But Vedder. we dare say. would protest that
matters of this sort were all outside his PROV
ince. What has interested him has been 10
recite the incidents of his growing years in
New York and in Cuba, the fun of his first
trip abroad, the little human things that marked
his settlement in Italy. where he has now dwelt
for many years. the innumerabIe droH stories
he has heard and told. the foibIes and virtues
OF his friends. OF these last it is delightful to
rIc Ia
volumes Of the sort. It is not SO much tact
that he uses, for that cCnnotes more or less
conscious discretion; it is instead just the sim
pie. friendly habit of a man who has not set
out to be important about his intimates. but
unaffectedly speaks of whoever comes into his
mind. Here is of the best of these artless
fragments. memory of old days in Boston:
If Hunt comforting, La Fargo was inspir-
ing: i nave never met any one more So and it was
only my my mPeFyoaSness my , = that Prevented my profit
say truthfuiiy his fioWers had never seen ann
thing like them then, and 1 have never seen any
thing like them since At this time remember
Doll having for sale that wonderful little picture
of La FarSe's-the old Newport house with its
are ioDI 60 coItreo Win SNOW, stahdihs scieHinIy
wonderful in sentiment, but for the truth OF the
went to Dolls, one day with the firm inteation
Ur oefUis S te napbS M PoSSeOI f 4L ts @ nete nict
have scented danger. and 1 found il was longer
never-to-be-forgotten flowers particularly in that
damp of violetS a shallow dish on a win
dow sill. where the outside family stirring
the lace curtains seems to watt the OdOr towards
you. This quality, peculiarly his own, affects
in his writings. that writer l was at
time inclined TO find fault with him for 4 certain
elaborate ObScUrity in his style. which /
arises from his striving to express shades OF
thought delicate that they seem to render words
almost useless. Therefore his words hover
about a thought butterflies hover about the
perfume of q flower.
a French ambassador said to a lady who
had been reprOvng somewhat Shrewdly certain
act of Napoleon III: Madame, the Emperor viii
be very sorry when he hears this
The passage is wonderfully close packed con-
sidering not only its brevity but the authors
quite casual purpose His 'DiSressions'' are al
like this. lightly touched but full of substance
Typical. too. is the demurely Illuminating ante
dote. Vedder is always enforcing his point or
amusingly closing the subject with some comic
or witty story. 1t might be urged that num-
Der Of his jokes have been heard before, but the
criticism would really be irrelevant, for the
charm of what Vedder has to say resides largely
in his way of saying it This is a book of orig
inal talk. in which the accent, so TO say. and
the gestures of the talker count for much. He
has not drawn up formal autobiography. He
has not attempted to produce a thoroughly bal
anced portrait Of himself. But not in long
time has a succeeded so we'll in putting
himself on paper. May good fortune follow his
hook