The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-11-08

forces, while the girls are Eva, Mariel and Madge, named in the order of their ages Of all these the first named on the ground of actual achievement must be described as the most distinguished though there is no saying that one of his brothers or sisters may not yet surpass his already enviable and per- haps unique record.
 Allan Barr, who, by the time you read these lines may be fighting for his country in France, is. in fact. per- haps the most promising young painter and etcher in England, and, in spite of his youth already has been paid the high compliment of having been chosen to execute quite an important artistic work in the United States, where he soon showed his mettle. Certainly he is the youngest exhibitor on record here, having had a painting-a fine life size portrait of his father in even ing dress-in the Royal Academy be- fore he was 21 and likewise having been represented, by paintings and etchings, both at the salon and at the exhibitions of the International Society of sculptors, Painters and Gravers. an even higher honor.
 He began painting at 16 and had a rigorous training in the studio of John M Swan the famous animal painter.
 It was only in June last that he re- turned from the United States, where he had been for just short of a year. He went over originally to do series of mural paintings for the B. P. o. F. (Iclks) Temple at Saginaw, Mich., one of the millionaire lumber kings lodges lodges having been selected for the job out of veritabe army of candidates. and he also spent lot of time at the famous Muskegan art gallery. executing while there portrait of its fair secretary, which was promptly accepted for the fa- nous Carnegie exhibition at Pittsburg, and which, since then, has been on ex- hibition in other cities. Incidentally. while in America. he won the Chase scholarship. which entities the man who is lucky enough to capture it to a year at the Beaux Arts, in Paris but since his return, on the advice of his present master, w. s. Lambert, he has decided not to avail himself of its privi- leges. He is a tall, dark haired young man with a face indicative of artistic intensity, and chest not quite broad enough to satisfy Lord l<itchener's re- quirements, which is why he was obliged to enlist in volunteer corps almost en- tirely composed of artists, which is now vigorously drilling out at Earl's Court, the Luna park of London. It would be loss to art indeed. if a German bullet even managed to get him in that clever right arm of his.
 Come We now to Russell Barr, the singer of the family, who 's at present living under canvass with his regiment. the Fourth London Rifles, and who, in- cidentally, is a godson of the late Clark Russell. writer of sea tales. who was one of James -Barr's closest friends. He Is a good-looking fellow, the possibilities in whose beautiful bass voice were first seen by Landon Ronald. the renowned British conductor and composer. another friend of the family. and whose studies have been carried on under the famous basso, Franklin Give, who is enthus- astic over the progress the .'oung man has made. The, latter Was singing in oratorio swhen the war broke out and has promised his father not to accept