Papurau Newydd Cymru

Chwiliwch 15 miliwn o erthyglau papurau newydd Cymru

Cuddio Rhestr Erthyglau

19 erthygl ar y dudalen hon

MISCELLANEOUS.

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THE WEATHER AND THE CROPS*.

THE MODOCS BEFORE DEATH.

"AN EXTRAORDINARY MEETING."

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THE JJATE SIR E. LANDSEER.

Newyddion
Dyfynnu
Rhannu

J THE JJATE SIR E. LANDSEER. Our greatest animal painter lies by the side of "nir greatest landscape painter. Both rest in St. Paul's cathedral where Reynolds, Lawrence, Barry, West, and I'i. ■ li have slept this many a year. Saturday morning last broke grey and dark, with wild clouds overhead, driven fast by the south-west gale, and the leaves fell fast from the tall trees which encircle Sir Edwin Landseer's house in St. John's Wood-road. Hard by is many another studio—Leslie's, Calderon's, land Thomas Land- seer's among them. In truth, Sir Edwin's late home stands at the entrance of an artists' colony, known as the St. John's Wood School. He himself was one of the earliest to settle there, within a rery few steps of another colony not less famous—a colony of literati, of whom "George Eliot" and [Sir Duffus Hardy are among the chief. Here, on almost classic ground, there assembled a good many spectators to see the great artist borne away from the spacious house in which his greatest works were wrought,to that last narrow house where there is neither work, nor know- ledge, nor device, and the most skilful hand has lost its cunning. Extravagantly showy funerals have gone out of use since Dickens's death and funeral dealt -a. death blow at them. Sir Edwin's was quite plain and simple. When the procession set out from the house there were but a plumed hearse drawn by four horses, and three mourning' coaches, each drawn by two horses, without plumes, and containing Miss Landseer, Mrs. Mackenzie, Mr. Thomas Landseer, Mr. Charles Landseer, two Masters Mackenzie, Master Webb, Mr. Hills, and Mr. Arnold White. The Queon's and Lady Coutts's carriages joined the procession on the road, and the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cam- bridge were also represented, A body of mounted police led the way in two detachments, each separated by about a hundred yards, and a detachment of foot constables closed up and followed close behind the hearse. Slowly this simple pro- cession wended its way through St. John's Wood- road, the Marylebone-road, Portland-place, and Recent-street, to Trafalgar-square, the site of the artist's great work the four bronze lions, guarding the base of Nelson's column. At the National Gallery about a dozen plain black carriages containing the Pre- sident (Sir F. Grant) and the Council of the Royal Academy joined the corttt/e which then moved slowly through the crowded Strand, past Temple Bar, down Fleet-street, and up Ludgate-Hill to the west front of St. Paul's, where the great doors, so rarely open, were thrown wide back to receive the cathedral'# newest inmate. Inside the Cathedral, a large, but by no meanaovernowing congregation had assembled. The places in the choir not wanted for the mourners, the clergy, and the choristers had been reserved for about 500 friends of the late artist. This is a time of the year when few celebrities are in town, our states- men being scattered throughout the country, and our artiscs being for the most part still absent on their sketching tours. Consequently of the first very few were present, and LordGranville was the only Cabinet Minister to be seen. But of the second there was a large attendance, for they had come, many of them from a long distance, to do honour to their late chief, to him who is inscribed on the list of Presidents, though he held the office for only a single day. Among the earliest to appear was the venerable George Cruik- Ihank, looking scarcely more than 60, though he has just entered his 82nd year, and is ten years older than the artist whose funeral rites he was at- tending. Not far from him were Marcus Stone, Peter Graham, G. A. Storey, Winfield, and in other parts of the choir Graves, the engraver, who has made Landseer's works known throughout the world, Field Talfourd, Hardy, Miss Braddon, Mr. Maxwell, Mr. Sliirley Brooks, Mr. Robert Browning, Pro- fessor Owen, and later on, after the procession had entered might have been seen the following artists r*- Messrs Webster, Frith, Lee, Marshall, Ward, Elmore, Millais, Richmond, Frost, Wells, Sant, Ar- mitage, Stocks, l'ettitt, Stephens, Lejeune, Dobson, Leslie, Orchardson, Cole, Walker, Barlow, and Wool- ner. Eugene Yerboeckhoven, the celebrated Dutch painter, was also present. The procession arrived nearly half an hour after time, and it was close upon half-past twelve when the first sound of the choristers' voices at the far west end reached the choir. They had been waiting long, the wind sorely ruffling their snow- white surplices as it blew through the great open doorway. Very forcibly and far away sounded the tolling bell, for the great bell is used only for royalty. Then at last the worda "I am the Resurrection and the Life" could be heard, and a procession of surpliced choris- ters and black mutes and undertaker's men was seen moving forward, and behind them the I coffin, all pacing very slowly past the space I beneath the dome until the lectern was reached. Strange to say, this had not been moved, but com- pletely blocked the way, so that the procession had to break up as it entered the choir. It was then headed by Bishop Claughtou, the Archdeacon, who read the lesson and that part of the service which was not chanted. To right and left filed the choristers, some fifty in number, and the coffin followed, borne by men who staggered beneath its enormous weight. It was covered by n. pall of the richest black velvet with broad white silk border, and with the artist's monogram—E. L.—also in white silk. On tha face of the coffin was a very largo cross of white camel- lias with a wreath of yellow jessamine at the head, and wreaths of violets, red roses, and white flowers at the feet. The pall was borne by Sir Francis Grant, the President,and seven other Royal Academicians. Then" these took their places at the right, and the chief mourners on the left of the coffin, or, to be ecclesiastically correct, to south and north re- spectively, north or left, being the more honourable position in the Church. Bishop Claughton, his white robes and red doctor's hood contrasting strangely with the black expanse of cloth on which he stood, placed himself at the head of the grave, and while the mour- ners and the R.A.'s, and the long following of artists and literati who came after them, were taking their places, the organ sounded forth a sweet and plaintive voluntary. The coffin was, during the interval, placed upon trestles, the wreaths and the pall re- moved, and the ooffin itself then became exposed to view. It was of very rich polished oak, with silver handles aJtd devices, and a silver plate with the plainest and simplest inscription—merely EDWIN LANDSEER, ] Born 7th March, 1802. i Died 1st October, 1873. The service then proceeded, both the 39th and 90th Psalms being sung. At the words ashes to ashes, dust to dust," the black-robed verger who stood by the bishop sprinkled a little sand. Then followed the various anthems, the choicest of all His body is buried in peace, "those words sung with most tender pathos, and then suddenly giving place to the trium- phant burst of gladness, But his soul liveth for ever- more." After the benediction relatives, artists, and literati, gathered round the open grave, ► and looked down upon the coffin now so covered with fragrant flowers that it could hardly be seen. As they gazed Mr. George Copper played that piece without which an English public funeral would be incomplete, Handel's Dead March in Saul," and slowly this great gathering, including many of the men whose names are most known throughout the English speaking world, tdisperaed, and left the great artist alone with the great dead who had preceded him. On Sunday morning a crowded congregation assem- bled under the dome of St. Paul's Cathedral to hear a funeral sermon on the death of Sir Edwin Landseer. The sermon was preached by the Rev. J. A. Hessey, D.D., the preacher of Gray s-iun, who selected for his text the 11th verse of the 3rd chapter of Ecclesiastes— "He hath made everything beautiful in his time." Referring to the spot selected for Landseer's final resting-place, he said:—Where Reynolds lay, great in the delineation of man, happiest artist in seizing and perpetuating the noblest'and best expression of mind in his features, where Turner lay, happiest artist in fixing the sunbeam as it flitted over some glorious land- scape or venerable ruin, there Edwin Landseer had taken his place. Landseer's claims to personal as well as national regard were many. From the first moment that he felt God had given him a talent he determined to cultivate it, He made the moat of every opportunity that was thrown in his way; the guidance of his father, himself no mean artist as an engraver, the lectures of the lioyal Academy, the as- sistance of kindred artists, the instruction of Hay- den, and the very criticism which his works received, all these he turned to account. He was not spoiled by popularity or induced to repose on his fame, or to do his work hastily and negligently, as many would havo been tempted to do— every accessory of the main sub- ject was elaborated with conscientiousness and accuracy. He was exact and truo to nature and to life in small as well as in great things. This, therefore, on Lands;er'» part was a precept to us of thoroughness, which, as it stood good in matters indifferent, was (L fortiori applicable to the very highest. In the next place, the subjects of Landseer's painting were sin- gularly pure and inoffensive. git was impossible to meutiun one against which the most fastidious miud could raise an objection. He was, then, thus far within himself a moral painter. His morality, how- ever, was not merely subjective, and to a certain de- gree negative it preached, as had been well said, a gospel oi kindness to dumb creatures, and it shewed that, limited as were the capacities of that order of beings, they liad'traits of character, such as fidelity, memory of gentle treatment, and even a deep affec- tion for their masters, which ought to call forth from thŒe masters at least the recollection of the maxim— Tha righteous man regardeth the life of his beast." Ho could well conceive an influence exercised by the pathos of the picture of the "Highand Shepherd's Chief Mourner," or the" HIghland Dog rescuing a. sheep from the snow drift," which might second the efforts of the Society for the Protection of Animals, if, indeed, it had not mainly conduced to the esta- blishment of it. But beyond this ho had an appre- ciation of shades of character in animals, which caused him to be compared in his delineation of them by his pencil to Shakspere in his delineation of hu- man character in its minutest shades by his mar- vellous pen; and when they remembered the old apophthegm that a picture is a silent poem, and a. poem a speaking picture, the comparison did not seem so far fetched. In bringing to a "conclusion an Mio- quent and practical discourse, the preacherisaid he had left himself but little room to speak of Landseer's pri- vate character, of his genial tone in society, his un- Mnbitiousness, his lack of self-seeking, aud of his attitude to God and his Saviour. Some of these things were patent to all, some of them were known otaly to his intimate friends, and into this last no stranger < tn ii'lit isttw* WJyrt man knoweth the HlOT AT

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