Title: Stories Pictures Tell - Book Four
Author: Carpenter, Flora L., 1880-
Language: English
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  STORIES
  PICTURES TELL

  BOOK FOUR

  _By_

  FLORA L. CARPENTER

  _Instructor in drawing in Waite High School, Toledo, Ohio
  Formerly supervisor of drawing, Bloomington, Illinois_

  _Illustrated with Half Tones from
  Original Photographs_

  RAND MCNALLY & COMPANY

  CHICAGO       NEW YORK



  _Copyright, 1918, by_
  RAND MCNALLY & COMPANY
  All rights reserved
  Edition of 1928

  [Illustration]

  Made in U. S. A.



THE CONTENTS


  SEPTEMBER AND OCTOBER                         PAGE

    "The Sower"                  _Millet_          1

    "Highland Shepherd's Chief
      Mourner"                   _Landseer_       13

  NOVEMBER, DECEMBER, AND JANUARY

    "Children of the Shell"      _Murillo_        23

    "Saved"                      _Landseer_       31

  FEBRUARY AND MARCH

    "Pilgrim Exiles"             _Boughton_       43

    "Dance of the Nymphs"        _Corot_          51

  APRIL, MAY, AND JUNE

    "Oxen Plowing"          _Rosa Bonheur_        63

    Review of Pictures and Artists Studied

  _The Suggestions to Teachers_                   75



THE PREFACE


Art supervisors in the public schools assign picture-study work in
each grade, recommending the study of certain pictures by well-known
masters. As Supervisor of Drawing I found that the children enjoyed
this work but that the teachers felt incompetent to conduct the
lessons as they lacked time to look up the subject and to gather
adequate material. Recourse to a great many books was necessary and
often while much information could usually be found about the artist,
very little was available about his pictures.

Hence I began collecting information about the pictures and preparing
the lessons for the teachers just as I would give them myself to
pupils of their grade.

My plan does not include many pictures during the year, as this is to
be only a part of the art work and is not intended to take the place
of drawing.

The lessons in this grade may be used for the usual drawing period of
from twenty to thirty minutes, and have been successfully given in
that time. However, the most satisfactory way of using the books is as
supplementary readers, thus permitting each child to study the
pictures and read the stories himself.

                                             FLORA L. CARPENTER

[Illustration: By permission of Braun & Co., Paris and New York

THE SOWER]



STORIES PICTURES TELL



THE SOWER


=Questions to arouse interest.= What is this man doing? Why do you think
so? What does he carry over his shoulder? in his bag? How does he sow
the grain? What will be the result of his work? How do you think the
grain will be covered? What can you see in the background? Do you think
the oxen are plowing the field or covering the grain? why? What time of
the day is it? What can you see in this picture to indicate that the man
has been working a long time? How is he dressed? How does he wear his
hat? What kind of boots is he wearing? What makes you think the ground
is soft? Is the man standing still, or walking? Why do you think so?
Where does he seem to be looking? Why do you think he looks ahead? What
is the cause of the glow in the sky behind him? What do you think are
the colors in the sky? the colors in the field? What time of the year is
it? in what country? What do you like best about this picture?


      =Original Picture:= Vanderbilt Collection, Metropolitan Museum,
                            New York.
      =Artist:= Jean François Millet (m[=e]´l[)e]´´).
      =Birthplace:= Gruchy, France.
      =Dates:= Born, 1814; died, 1875.


=The story of the picture.= In this picture Millet has tried to tell
us only a few important facts about the man and his work. It is easy
to see that he is sowing grain broadcast over the field. The shadows
creeping over ground and sky tell us that night is fast approaching.
He seems intent upon finishing that last stretch of field before dark,
and his steady, rhythmic swing shows none of the physical weariness he
must feel.

When we think of the life of this sturdy French peasant, as the artist
surely intended we should, we realize the patience and perseverance
required in the monotonous day's work, and we are forced to a feeling
of respect and admiration for him.

In these days with what ease and skill the same task is performed by
the aid of machinery! Riding on the seat of a machine which drills the
seed into the ground and covers it up, the man would have found the
simple task of guiding his horses a very pleasant one indeed. As he
walks along so energetically, his eyes are probably fixed on some
stake at the end of the field to guide him as he travels back and
forth, sowing the grain.

No doubt he used a team of oxen to plow and harrow the ground before
he sowed the seed. We have no way of knowing just what kind of a
harrow he had, but very likely it was one made of brush or branches of
trees. We can see a team of oxen and a driver in the distance, who
seem to be following in the tracks of our sower and covering up the
seeds he is sowing.

The artist, Millet, knew all about such work, for he himself had
worked out in the fields through the long day. He tells us that his
"ancestors were peasants and he was born a peasant."

No doubt the man in our picture started out on his day's work long
before the sun was up. His first task, after eating his breakfast and
feeding his oxen, was to yoke the oxen ready for the journey to the
field where their work was to be done. No doubt the man has been working
steadily ever since, for he does not look like a man who would stop to
rest very many times. He gives us rather a feeling of physical strength
and of steady, faithful effort in the accomplishment of his daily tasks.

At the close of such a day's labor in the field he will be too utterly
weary to sit up and read, as most of our farmers do during these days
of farm machinery and rural delivery. And yet, there were some who did
read even in those days when work was so difficult, for we know that
Millet sat up many nights with the village priest, who taught him
reading and arithmetic, and with whom he studied Latin and read the
works of Shakespeare. It was due to this greater knowledge that Millet
became something more than a mere peasant. It was this that gave him
such perfect sympathy with and keen insight into the peasants' lives.
His own knowledge of the world made him more conscious of the great
contrast between their narrow, hard-working lives so full of
privation, and those of the men and women in the great world outside
so full of opportunity and promise. Yet even in so great a city as
Paris, men could starve, as he had found out by his own experience.

Perhaps Millet wished to make us feel the content of a successful
day's work such as this, with its well-earned quiet and rest, free
from the hurry and noise of the city. Although the sun is sinking over
a world of beauty and pleasure, our sower knows nothing and cares for
nothing except the accomplishment of his task. His hat, pulled down
over his face, shades his heavy, coarse features. Although an expert
in his work, doing to the utmost, his mind is probably dull and slow
and quite unequal to any great mental task. And yet what a great work
is his, after all! How dependent we are upon the men of whom he is a
type! The fact that he is doing his own work and doing that work well
compels our respect and admiration.

The light from the sun disappearing behind the hill brings out in
silhouette the figure of the sower turned toward the dark and earthy
field. This man is not posing for his picture. Quite unconscious of
our gaze, he swings briskly forward, his feet sinking slightly into
the newly plowed field. From the bag hanging from his shoulder he
scatters the grain with a long sweep of his strong right arm.

He is actually moving in the picture. Take this position for yourself.
The weight of the body falls evenly upon both feet. To raise either
foot you must move the entire body. As the right foot goes forward the
right arm goes back. If you try taking long strides and swinging your
arms you will find this is the natural movement.

The horizon line is slanting or diagonal, and divides the light part
of the picture from the dark. The sky and ground are held together by
the figure of the sower. Notice the absence of details in the picture.

The art critics of Millet's day did not appreciate the great thought
expressed in this picture, for nearly all of them found fault with it.
They could see no beauty in "a common laborer in his dirty clothes
doing his miserable work," and thought Millet should have chosen
something more beautiful to paint. What do you think of the justice of
this criticism? What is your opinion of the beauty of this picture?
Millet loved these simple, kind-hearted, hard-working peasants, loved
their lives of toil in the fields, respected their labors, and being
so wholly in sympathy with them, he wished to make us feel so, too.


=Questions to help the pupil understand the picture.= Where is the man?
in what country? How can you tell what time of the day it is? Why does
he not seem weary? Why do you think he must be very tired? How early do
the French peasants usually start to work? What must this man do before
daybreak? Why do you think he is not lazy? Why do we respect and admire
him? How could his work be made easier now? How do most of our farmers
sow and plant their seed? How did this man plow his ground? What is a
harrow for? What kind of a harrow did this man have? What is the team of
oxen at the farther end of the field doing? Does this man seem to be
looking at the ground or far ahead? How did the artist, Millet, know so
much about this kind of work? What would this man probably do after his
day's work? Why did he not read the newspaper, as our farmers do? What
did Millet do in the evening? How did this help him? What did Millet
wish to make us feel in this picture? How does the horizon line divide
the picture? How are the sky and ground held together? Why do you
suppose Millet did not paint details, such as the features of the face
or the buttons on the coat? What did the critics say about this picture?
How many agree with them? why? why not?


=To the Teacher:= Ask one of the pupils to take this position while the
others sketch the action, finishing the sketch from memory--and adding
their own background. Use ink silhouette, or charcoal on manila paper.


=The story of the artist.= Jean François Millet was the son of poor
French peasants who lived on a farm and worked hard to take care of
their large family of eight children. Jean was the eldest boy. The
father was very fond of music and of all beautiful things out of
doors, and often he would say to his son, "Look at that tree, how
large and beautiful! It is as beautiful as a flower." He would call
the boy's attention to the beauty of the fields, the sunsets, and all
things around them.

Millet's mother worked out in the fields with the father all day long,
so it was the grandmother who took care of the little boy. It was she
who named him Jean after his father, and François after the good Saint
Francis. She was a deeply religious woman, and nearly all the pictures
Millet saw when a boy were those in her Bible. He copied these
pictures many times, drawing them with white chalk on the stone walls
of the house. This pleased his grandmother very much, and she
encouraged him all she could.

At the age of six he was sent to school. When he was twelve years old,
the priest of the village became interested in him and offered to
teach him Latin. Millet was only too glad to accept this offer, and
many a happy evening the two spent thus together. But his studies were
frequently interrupted by his work on the farm, for since he was the
eldest son his father depended most upon him. It was the custom in
France among the peasants to take a daily hour of rest from their
labors. But the boy Millet, instead of sleeping, spent the hour in
drawing the homely scenes around him.

One Sunday morning, coming home from church, Millet met an old man who
walked very slowly, his back bent over a cane. We have all seen just
such old men, and their feebleness has aroused our sympathy and
respect. It is not strange, then, that something about this bent
figure appealed to young Millet so strongly that he could not resist
the desire to draw a portrait of the man.

He drew the portrait on a stone wall, with a piece of charcoal, and so
well that people passing on their way home from church recognized it
at once and were very much surprised and pleased. His father, perhaps,
was the most delighted of all, for once he himself had wished to be an
artist. Now he determined that his son should have the chance.

We are sure Millet never forgot that day when the father, mother,
grandmother, and his brothers and sisters sat around the table after
dinner and talked about his wonderful picture and what they could do
to help him become a great painter. And when it was finally decided
that his father should take him to the artist (Mouchel) in the next
village, you may be sure he worked hard on the drawings he was to take
with him. At last the day came for the journey, and the proud father
and his happy son set out on foot for the home of the artist.

When shown the drawings Mouchel at first refused to believe the boy
had made them, they were so good. Finally convinced, he was glad
indeed to take Millet as one of his pupils. But Millet studied with
him only two months when his father died and he was obliged to return
home to take his father's place on the farm as best he could.

By this time the people of the village had become so much interested
in his paintings that they decided to help him. So they raised a large
sum of money, sent him back to the artist to study, and finally sent
him to the great city of Paris, France. But although he painted
wonderful pictures which are worth thousands of dollars to-day, his
style of art was not appreciated then and would not sell, and he was
glad to paint portraits for a few francs each in order to make a
living. His life in Paris was a continuous struggle with poverty, and
at last he decided to leave. With his wife and children he settled in
a little three-roomed cottage at Barbizon, a tiny little village near
a great forest and only a day's journey from Paris.

Here was Millet's home all the rest of his life. Although still very
poor, the family did not starve, as they came so near doing while they
lived in Paris, for the garden and the fruit trees always provided
them with something to eat.

At that time the popular artists were painting beautiful pictures of
lovely women and men of the nobility in their fine clothes, or of
wonderful saints and angels, and pictures showing only the happier
side of life. To them Millet's pictures came as a shock, bringing to
mind the dirt and grime of the common, everyday tasks of the poorer
French peasants. And, more than that, he made them realize the
dreadful condition in which the French Revolution had left many of
these same peasants, and that was something of which they did not care
to be reminded. So they refused to buy his pictures, and it was not
until the last ten years of his life that Millet received a little of
the recognition and honor that he so richly deserved. With his
increasing fame came better financial conditions, and in 1867 he
received the ribbon of the Legion of Honor.


=Questions about the artist.= Who painted this picture? In what
country did he live? Tell about his mother and father. Who took care
of Millet when he was a boy? What pictures did he copy? Where did he
draw them? With what did he draw? Who encouraged him? What did the
priest teach him? Tell about the picture of the old man leaning on the
cane. Where did he draw this picture? Who saw it? Why do you think it
must have been a good likeness? How did Millet's father feel about it?
What did he do? How did they travel? What did the artist think? How
long did Millet study with him? Why did he return home? What did his
neighbors do for him? What was he obliged to paint for a living? Where
did he move? What kind of pictures were the popular artists of that
day painting? Why were Millet's pictures not popular? When were his
pictures appreciated? Why have his pictures outlived those of the
popular artists of that time?



[Illustration]

HIGHLAND SHEPHERD'S CHIEF MOURNER


=Questions to arouse interest.= What do you see in this picture? For
whom is the dog grieving? What makes you think the shepherd may have
been an old man? a religious man? a lonely man? Is there anything in
the picture that would suggest the country in which he lived? What is
there in the picture to suggest the time of the year? the occupation
of the man? What kind of dog is this? Who painted the picture? Tell
something about his life. Do you like this picture? How does it make
you feel?


      =Original Picture:= South Kensington Museum, London.
      =Artist:= Sir Edwin Landseer (l[)a]nd´´s[=e]r).
      =Birthplace:= London, England.
      =Dates:= Born, 1802; died, 1873.


=The story of the picture.= Here we are looking into the interior of a
highland shepherd's hut. Our eyes are immediately attracted to the
center of the room, where we see the coffin of the shepherd covered
with a blanket against which his dog keeps solitary watch. A well-worn
Bible and a pair of glasses on the stool near by, the hat, the cane,
all suggest something of the life and age of the shepherd. We are told
that he was a very old man who had lived all his life among the hills
of Scotland. For the last few years, at least, he had lived here alone
except for the companionship of his faithful dog and his sheep.

The good old dog could tell you all about it. How, early in the morning,
he would go with his master to drive the sheep to the best grazing
ground, where all day long they guarded and watched them, the man and
the dog sharing their noonday lunch of coarse bread. And why did they
need to watch the sheep so carefully? There were a great many eagles
whose nests were high up in the giant oak trees or up in some rocky
cliff far away, and they came flying over the hills looking for food.
Woe to the sheep if their master was not near to care for them, for then
an eagle would swoop down upon his choice and carry it away to his nest.
Then, too, there may have been wild animals prowling about, and the
sheep must be protected from them. The dog and his master also had to
keep watch lest some lamb stray away from the flock and get lost.

In the evening the dog helped his master drive the sheep to shelter in
the great sheds where they were kept safe all night. Then up the hill
they would climb to their home, where the shepherd prepared the simple
evening meal for himself and his dog. Now what could they do after
supper? It was too far for the old man to go to the distant village,
and no one was likely to come in to see them. No doubt, too, he was
very tired, and ready to go to bed very early. You know how sleepy you
are after you have been out in the fields all day long. But first he
read a little in his Bible; and when the dog saw his master take up
the book and put on his spectacles, he probably stretched out on the
floor and kept very still.

As time went on, the old man became more feeble and the dog worked all
the harder to save his master's strength. It may be that toward the
last the dog did almost all the work of caring for the sheep. Then,
one morning, the old shepherd did not wake up. Even the tugging and
sharp barks of his faithful friend failed to arouse him. It may be
that the dog's barks brought some passing drovers to the door.

In the picture the dog presses close to the coffin. His clinging paws
have dragged the blanket to the floor. His eyes seem full of tears of
hopeless grief, as if he understood his master could not come back. He
must have kept that same rigid and sorrowful position since the men
left. Some green branches placed upon the coffin have fallen to the
floor because of the dog's first frantic tugging at the blanket. The
shepherd must have led a lonely life indeed to have no one but his
faithful dog to watch beside him. His hat and cane lie where he left
them, and all is very quiet.

In another picture Landseer painted a dog lying on the ground over the
grave where his master lies buried. We can easily imagine that this
dog will follow his master to his last resting place and that he, too,
will act as sentinel over the grave of the one he loves so dearly.
Landseer wanted to make us feel how good and faithful a friend a dog is.


=Questions to help the pupil understand the picture.= Whose home was
this? In what country did he live? Tell about his life among the
hills. Who helped him care for the sheep? Why must they be cared for?
Where did they stay at night? What could the old man do in the
evening? When he became feeble, who did nearly all the work of caring
for the sheep? When the master did not wake up what did the dog
probably do? Why have the branches fallen from the coffin? Why do you
suppose there is no one else in the room?


=The story of the artist.= Sir Edwin Landseer's grandfather was a
jeweler and his father also learned that trade. The jewelers of that
day were very often asked to engrave the copper plates that were used
in printing pictures. Sir Edwin's father soon decided that he would
rather engrave pictures than sell jewels, and he became a very
skillful engraver.

At that time few people realized what an art it was to be able to cut
a picture in copper so that a great many copies of it could be made
from one plate. They did not even consider it an art as we do, and so
engravers were not allowed to exhibit at the Royal Academy and were
given no honors at all. Edwin's father thought this was not right, and
gave several lectures in defense of the art. He said that engraving is
a kind of "sculpture performed by incision." His talks were of no
avail at the time, but within a year after his death the engravers
received the recognition due them.

His eldest son, Thomas, also became famous as an engraver, and to him
we are indebted for so many fine prints of Sir Edwin Landseer's
paintings. Thomas also made an engraving of the "Horse Fair" for Rosa
Bonheur. Few can afford to own the paintings, but the prints come
within the means of all of us.

Edwin's father taught him to draw, and even when Edwin was only five
years old he could draw remarkably well. Edwin had three sisters and
two brothers. They lived in the country, and often the father went
with his children for a walk through the fields. There were two very
large fields separated by a fence over which was built an
old-fashioned stile with several steps. The fence was built high so
the sheep and cows in the fields could not jump over. One day Edwin
stopped at the stile to look at the cows and asked his father to show
him how to draw them. His father then gave Edwin his first lesson in
drawing a cow. After this Edwin came nearly every day to these fields
and his father called them "Edwin's studio."

When he was only thirteen years old, two of his pictures were exhibited
at the Royal Academy. One was a portrait of a mule, and the other was of
a dog and puppies. Edwin painted from real life always, not caring to
make copies from the work of others. All the sketches he made when he
was a little boy were kept carefully by his father, and now if you go to
England you may see them in the South Kensington Museum in London.

Landseer was only sixteen years old when he exhibited his wonderful
picture "Fighting Dogs Getting Wind." A very rich man whose praise
meant a great deal bought the picture, and the young artist's success
was assured.

It was about this time, too, that he painted an old white horse in the
stable of another wealthy man. After the picture was finished and
ready to deliver, it suddenly disappeared. A diligent search was made
for it, but it was not found until twenty-four years afterwards. A
servant had stolen it and hidden it in a hayloft. He had been afraid
to sell it or even to keep it in his home, for no one would have
failed to recognize the great artist's work.

For many years Landseer lived and painted in his father's house in a
poor little room without even a carpet. The only furniture, we are
told, were three cheap chairs and an easel. Later he had a fine studio
not far from Regent's Park. Here was a small house with a garden and a
barn. The barn was made over into a studio. Here so many people
brought their pets for him to paint that he had to keep a list, and
each was obliged to wait his turn. But Sir Edwin was not a very good
business man, so he left all his affairs to his father, who sold his
pictures for him and kept his accounts.

Landseer made a special study of lions, too. A lion died at the park
menagerie and he dissected its body and studied and drew every part.
He painted many pictures of lions. He also modeled the great lions at
the base of the Nelson Monument in Trafalgar Square, London.

Although Landseer painted so many wild animals, birds, and hunting
scenes, he did not care to shoot animals. His weapons were his pencil
and sketch book. Sometimes he hired guides to take him into the
wildest parts of the country in search of game. But he quite disgusted
the guides when, a great deer bounding toward him, he would merely
make a sketch of it in his book.

Many of Landseer's paintings are of scenes in Scotland, as is this
one, "Highland Shepherd's Chief Mourner." When Sir Edwin Landseer went
to visit Scotland one of his fellow travelers was Sir Walter Scott,
the great novelist. The two became close friends. Sir Walter Scott
tells us: "Landseer's dogs were the most magnificent things I ever
saw, leaping and bounding and grinning all over the canvas." Landseer
painted Sir Walter Scott's dog "Maida Vale" many times, and he named
his studio for the dog.

At twenty-four Landseer became an associate of the Royal Academy,
which was an unusual honor for so young a man.

In 1850 the honor of knighthood was conferred upon him.

This story is told of him at a social gathering in the home of a
well-known leader of society in London. The company had been talking
about skill with the hands, when some one remarked that no one had ever
been found who could draw two things at once. "Oh, I can do that," said
Landseer; "lend me two pencils and I will show you." Quickly he drew the
head of a horse with one hand while with the other he drew a stag's head
and antlers. Both sketches were so good that they might well have been
drawn with the same hand and with much more study.

Sir Edwin Landseer felt that animals understand, feel, and reason just
like people, so he painted them as happy, sad, gay, dignified,
frivolous, rich, poor, and in all ways just like human beings. This
appealed to the people, and he became very popular.

Sir Edwin did and said all he could against the custom of "cropping"
the ears of dogs. He said that nature intended to protect the ears of
dogs that "dig in the dirt," and man should not interfere. People
paid attention to what he said, and the custom lost favor.

Landseer died in London in 1873 at the age of seventy-one. A tablet
placed to his memory in the notch of one of the windows at Westminster
Abbey has a medallion portrait of him at the top, and below this,
carved in light relief, is a copy of one of his most famous paintings,
"The Highland Shepherd's Chief Mourner."


=Questions about the artist.= Tell about Sir Edwin Landseer's father.
What did he do? Why were engravers not allowed to exhibit their work?
What did Edwin's father do to defend his art? What did Edwin's brother,
Thomas, accomplish? Why are we so indebted to him? Who taught Edwin how
to draw? Tell about his brothers and their walks in the fields. What
animal did Edwin draw first? Where was "Edwin's studio"? Which two of
his pictures were exhibited when he was only thirteen years old? What
became of the sketches he made when he was a boy? Tell about his two
studios. Tell about his picture of the old white horse. With whom did
Sir Edwin Landseer travel through Scotland? What did Sir Walter Scott
say about Landseer's dogs? How did Landseer happen to name his studio
"Maida Vale"? What weapons did Sir Edwin use when he hunted? Why did he
not shoot the animals? Tell about his drawing with both hands. In what
ways are animals like people according to Landseer's judgment?



[Illustration]

CHILDREN OF THE SHELL


=Questions to arouse interest.= Where do these children seem to be?
Which of the two children seems to be the older? What is the boy at
the right doing? From what is he drinking? Why do you think the boy at
the left has given him a drink? How is he helping him now? What does
the boy who is drinking hold in his left hand? How is he standing?
What is the lamb doing? Who else seems to be watching them? Why do you
think the picture is called "Children of the Shell"? Do you like this
picture? why?


      =Original Picture:= Prado Gallery, Madrid, Spain.
      =Artist:= Bartolomé Esteban Murillo (m[=oo] r[=e]l´´y[=o]).
      =Birthplace:= Seville, Spain.
      =Dates:= Born, 1618; died, 1682.


=The story of the picture.= The great religious painter, Murillo, has
given us many pictures of the Christ child and John the Baptist, but
perhaps none more pleasing than this one which critics have so often
declared the most beautiful picture of children ever painted.

We must go back in our Bible history to the time when the wicked King
Herod reigned over Judea, for it was then that our story begins. This
proud king had conquered all his enemies and expected to live at ease
in his rich and beautiful palace, surrounded by all that would give
him comfort and pleasure. But one day he was made very unhappy when a
messenger appeared bringing him most unwelcome news. It was that a
child had been born in Bethlehem at just the time and place it had
been prophesied that a child should be born who would one day be king
over all the world. In a manger of a stable, true to the prophecy, the
baby Jesus was born. The three wise men of the East and many others
who already worshiped him as king sought and found him there. The
thought that the child would grow up to rule over his kingdom alarmed
King Herod, and he resolved to remove this possible rival before it
was too late. Fearful lest the child should escape, Herod sent out a
terrible decree that all boy babies under two years of age should be
killed. That must have been a dreadful day, for there was little hope
of escape or concealment.

However, Mary and Joseph had been warned by an angel several days
before, and with the child Jesus they were already safe on their way
to Egypt. They had left in the night, and no one could tell anything
about them, or where to look for them. Several years later King Herod
died, and almost immediately Mary, Joseph, and the boy Jesus started
on the homeward journey. It was during this journey, we are told, that
the boy, running on ahead of the donkey Mary was riding, found a cool
little spring where he could quench his thirst. Suddenly there
appeared another boy wearing a camel's-hair cloak and carrying a
wooden stick with a cross carved upon it. He was followed by a lamb.
It was John the Baptist, who, although only a child, was living among
the hills, eating locusts and wild honey, preparing for the great work
he was to do. It is supposed that as the mothers of these two boys
often visited each other, the children must have met before. In the
picture we see them standing near the cool little spring. Jesus has
in his hand a shell which, straightway forgetting his own thirst, he
has filled and now offers to his cousin John.

John the Baptist is bending over to drink from the shell which Jesus
holds for him. The lamb watches them contentedly, while from the sky
above the angels, with clasped hands and smiling faces, look down in
silent adoration. Although he does not look at them, Jesus seems
conscious of their presence, for he points toward them with his little
hand. Light radiates from the clouds and the angels, while deep
shadows at the left and the right serve to heighten the effectiveness
of the central part of the picture. The lamb, as the symbol of
innocence, is the natural playmate of these two healthy, sturdy boys.
The little John drinks eagerly, as if he were indeed thirsty and
weary, while Jesus, although younger in years, has the kind and
thoughtful look of an elder brother caring for a younger.

At this moment they seem to be merely two thirsty boys, little knowing
the great work before them or thinking of anything but to quench their
thirst. Yet some of the coming greatness shows itself in the generous
action of the child Jesus and the gentle acceptance of John the Baptist.


=Questions to help the pupil understand the picture.= Whom does this
picture represent? For what kind of paintings is Murillo famous? what
subjects? Tell about King Herod. Why was he worried when he heard of the
birth of Jesus? What did he do in order to be sure the child would be
killed? What did the parents of the baby Jesus do? When was it safe for
the boy Jesus to return? How did he happen to meet John at the spring?
How was John dressed? What followed him? For what does the lamb stand?
Who has the shell? What does he do with it? Why do you suppose he did
not drink first? To whom does Jesus point or beckon with his left hand?
Which boy was the younger? For what is this picture famous?


=The story of the artist.= A little Spanish boy, Bartolomé Esteban
Murillo, born into the home of a poor mechanic, and with no
opportunities save those of his own making, grew to be one of the
greatest of Spanish painters. Both his parents died before he was eleven
years old, and he seems to have been left quite to his own devices.
Until that time he had attended school, where his ability to draw had
shown itself in pictures drawn on the walls of the school building.

After school and on Saturdays he had assisted an artist, doing such work
as cleaning brushes, grinding paints, and running errands. An uncle had
secured this position for him, but seemed to be unable to help him
further. By these means and by painting banners and pictures for the
weekly market, the boy earned his own living. The peasants came to
Seville from all the country around, bringing in their fruits,
vegetables, and wares to sell. Here the young Murillo took his
paintings, which were on coarse, cheap cloth instead of on canvas, which
he could not afford. Sometimes it was a Madonna, sometimes a portrait of
the buyer which he would finish quickly while the crowd watched, or
sometimes one of the beggar boys in the gypsy quarters of the city.

But Murillo had a boy friend who went to London to study with the
great Sir Anthony Van Dyck, and who, when he returned, brought such
news of the wonderful paintings in the galleries of London and Paris
that Murillo began to dream of seeing them. Before he had saved enough
money to go, however, the artist Van Dyck died, and Murillo decided to
go to Madrid, where one of his own countrymen, Velásquez, had won
great fame. He walked nearly all the way, presenting his letter of
introduction to Velásquez, who received him most kindly.

Murillo was now twenty-four years old, enthusiastic, ambitious, and
manly. Velásquez soon discovered his great talent, and not only
received him as a pupil but took him into his own home, where he
remained three years. When, at the end of that time, he returned to
Seville, his fame as an artist was established and pupils came to him
from all over the country. His friends could be found among the very
poorest beggars as well as among the most influential men of the city,
and he was idolized by his pupils. Always of a deeply religious
nature, he chose religious subjects for most of his paintings. In his
studio all swearing and ill conduct were forbidden, and his religious
paintings were produced only after much prayerful meditation.

He gave so generously to the poor about him that it was said he gave
away all he earned.

Often his wife, who was very beautiful, his lovely daughter, or his
two handsome sons posed for his paintings, and so we find the same
faces repeated in several pictures.

One day when Murillo was painting on the walls of a convent the cook
there asked him to paint a small picture for him on a napkin, which
was all he had to offer for a canvas. Without hesitation Murillo
painted a beautiful Madonna and Child which has since become famous as
the "Virgin of the Napkin."

While painting the ceiling in a church in Cadiz the scaffolding broke
and he fell, injuring himself so seriously that he died shortly after.

Every Sunday afternoon, which is a free day at the gallery in Madrid,
crowds of the poor, men, women, and children, may be seen gathered
around the paintings by Murillo, which they regard with an admiration
which is almost worship. To them Murillo is little less than a saint.


=Questions about the artist.= In what country did Murillo live? What
nationality do his pictures represent? Tell about his boyhood. In what
did he excel at school? What work did he do after school and on
Saturdays? What else did Murillo do to earn money? Tell about the weekly
market. What did Murillo paint for the market? Whom did he paint? What
did his boy friend tell him that made him want to go to London? Why did
he not go? What happened before he had saved enough money to go? To whom
did he go then? How did he go? How old was he by that time? What did the
artist Velásquez do for him? What kind of people were Murillo's friends?
What kind of pictures did he like to paint best? How did he prepare for
this? What rules did he have in his studio? Tell about the cook at the
convent and the napkin. What is this picture called? How was Murillo
hurt? How do some of the Spanish people regard Murillo?



[Illustration]

SAVED


=Questions to arouse interest.= What has happened? Where are the dog
and the child? Why do you think it could not have been a shipwreck?
Why are the sea gulls flying around? What can you see in the distance?
What kind of a beach is it?


      =Artist:= Sir Edwin Landseer (l[)a]nd´´s[=e]r).
      =Birthplace:= London, England.
      =Dates:= Born, 1802; died, 1873.


=The story of the picture.= This fine Newfoundland dog has just saved
the life of a little child. We can see even in this print of the
picture that they are both dripping wet, and so we know the child
must have fallen into the water and was about to drown when the dog
swam out and brought her safely to the shore.

We can only guess how the accident occurred. It could not have been a
shipwreck, for then there would be others for the good old dog to
save; besides, although the sky is partly cloudy, there is no evidence
of a storm, and we see sailboats in the distance.

The child evidently had not been wading out into the water and gone
beyond her depth, because she has on her shoes and stockings and is
dressed for a day in the warm sunshine, perhaps out on the beach.
Probably she had been playing on the wharf or on the rocky shore and
had reached out too far or had slipped on a rock.

The dog, hearing her cry, must have immediately plunged into the water
after her. Then holding the child firmly by her dress, he had battled
against the waves until he reached a sandy beach from which he had
dragged himself to this place.

Although we cannot see the parents, nurse, or playmates, no doubt they
are running toward the child and the dog. The dog seems to be watching
their approach as he lies there exhausted, guarding the precious
burden lying across his paws. His great tongue hangs out and we can
almost hear him pant as he gasps for breath after his fierce struggle
against the waves.

The child is still unconscious, her large shade hat held by a rubber
band under her chin; her arm lies limp and lifeless, yet we are sure
the great dog has been in time, and she will soon open her eyes. The
sea gulls circle about the two as if they were glad of the rescue, and
were trying to show the parents where to find the child.

These powerful Newfoundland dogs are strong swimmers. At the first cry
of alarm they usually plunge unbidden into the water, and rarely fail to
accomplish a rescue. In France they are kept on the banks of the Seine
as important members of the life-saving crew. Here they are carefully
trained for this purpose by their masters, who throw a stuffed figure of
a man into the water and teach the dogs to bring it back to shore. They
are taught always to hold the head of the figure above the water. They
seem to understand perfectly just what is wanted of them and why.

A story is told, and it is claimed to be true, of a woman who, while
washing clothes on the bank of a river, placed her baby in the clothes
basket to keep it safe. In some way the child tipped the basket,
rolling out of it and down the bank into the deep water below. The
woman screamed but she was helpless. Hearing her cry, a large
Newfoundland dog that she had never seen before came swimming down the
stream and saved the child, carrying it to the opposite shore.

The woman ran down the bank of the river and secured the help of a
ferryman and his grandson, a boy about ten years old. When the boat
reached the opposite shore the big dog was licking the hands and face
of the cooing child, but growled and barked viciously at the people
who were approaching him. No one dared go near him. They tried every
device, but no, he could not be coaxed away from the baby.

At last the boy said he had an idea, and off he ran down the bank and
jumped into the boat. Rowing out some distance into the river, he
suddenly jumped from the boat into the water, uttering a loud cry of
distress. He struggled a while, and then to all appearances sank out
of sight. The grandfather knew the boy could swim and dive, and yet
the suddenness with which he sank alarmed him greatly, and he called
out, too.

Immediately the great dog recognized the cry of alarm and, forgetting
all else, left his small charge and rushed to the help of the larger
one, bringing the boy safely to the shore. Meanwhile, of course, the
mother had taken up the baby. The dog, though showing surprise at the
quick recovery of the boy he supposed to be nearly drowned, still
determined to guard him in the same way he had guarded the baby.

About this time, however, the dog's owner, a huntsman, appeared. The
dog greeted him joyously, running from the child to the boy and then
to his master as if to tell him what he had done and how he had
guarded them until his master came.

Many times it has been told of a Newfoundland that, when annoyed by
some small dog that persisted in barking and snapping at him, he would
finally seize it by the back of the neck, carry it to the river, and
drop it into the water. After watching the struggles of the little
dog, which seldom was able to swim, the Newfoundland would plunge in
and rescue him. After that you may be sure the little dog took care
not to annoy the big one.

A humorous incident is told of two boatmen who, on a wager, started to
swim across a stream. When one of the men was in midstream his
Newfoundland dog plunged in after him and in spite of his struggles
brought him back to the shore by his hair. The crowd which had been
watching was greatly amused, but the chagrined sailor was able to
laugh in turn when the great animal, mistaking the emotion of the
onlookers, brought the other man back also.

A lady who owned a fine Newfoundland dog allowed him one day to carry
her parasol. When they came to a baker's shop she bought a bun for him.
The next day the dog met another lady coming down the street carrying a
parasol. He immediately seized it and ran on ahead until he came to the
baker's shop. The lady went in and asked the baker to help her secure
her parasol. He suggested that she give the dog a bun as his mistress
had done. Then the dog gave up the parasol willingly. He had to be
punished very severely before he could be broken of this habit.

Cases have been known of these dogs rescuing even so delicate a thing
as a canary bird that had fallen into the water.

Intelligent and faithful, perhaps there is no other dog, unless it be
the St. Bernard, which rescues travelers in the snow-covered Alps,
that has done so much for man or has saved so many lives.

These dogs show remarkable kindness not only toward man but toward
other animals. When another dog has been injured they have been known
to carry bones and other food to it.

A Newfoundland was once taken to a dog pound with numerous other dogs.
He soon gnawed his rope in two and was about to escape when, hearing
the piteous cries of the other dogs, he went from one to another,
setting them all free.

Even abuse will not make these loyal animals turn against a master,
although they have been known to run away from a cruel one. A story is
told of a man who, while rowing a boat, pushed his Newfoundland dog
into the stream. The dog followed the boat for some time but, growing
tired at last, tried to get back into the boat. The man pushed him
away several times, finally pushing so hard that he overturned the
boat and was about to drown. The good dog, however, caught hold of his
coat and held him above water until help came.

In the island of Newfoundland these dogs are used much as we use
horses, and are very valuable. With them duty is first. We often hear
of one of these dogs carrying a basket of meat, a paper, or some other
thing for his owner, and bearing any amount of annoyance from other
dogs until he has delivered his charge safely; then he promptly goes
back and punishes the offenders in such a way that they dare not
interfere with him again.

These dogs are noble animals indeed. Their lives are devoted to man,
though their devotion is not always appreciated as it should be.

Lord Byron writes:

    "In life the firmest friend,
    The first to welcome, foremost to defend;
    Whose honest heart is still his master's own;
    Who labors, fights, lives, breathes for him alone.
    The rich man's guardian, and the poor man's friend."

No wonder Sir Edwin Landseer loved to paint these noble animals. Their
intelligent look and, better still, their brave and noble deeds render
them almost human, lacking only the power of speech. It seems sometimes
as if they really do talk, and the owners of such dogs declare that
their actions prove that the dogs understand every word said to them.

Sir Edwin Landseer has painted another picture of a Newfoundland dog,
called "A Member of the Royal Humane Society," which looks so much
like this one that it might be the same dog.


=Questions to help the pupil understand the picture.= What kind of a
dog is this? What has he done? What makes you think he and the little
girl have been in the water? that there has not been a shipwreck? Why
do you think the child had not been wading? How is she dressed? How
do you suppose she happened to fall into the water? How could this dog
save her? Where do you suppose the child's playmates and nurse are?
Where is the dog lying? Why does he not take the child to them? What
makes you think he is tired? How are Newfoundland dogs sometimes
trained in France? Tell about the washwoman and her baby. How was the
baby rescued? Why could the mother not take the child? What did the
boy do? What happened then? When were they released? How do
Newfoundland dogs sometimes punish small dogs that annoy them? Why do
they not drown? Tell about the two boatmen and their wager. Tell about
the dog and the lady's parasol. What do these stories tell us about
Newfoundland dogs? What other kind of dogs save many lives? What did
the Newfoundland do at the dog pound? How do they sometimes resent
abuse? Tell about the boatman and his dog. Upon what island are they
used to carry burdens? Tell a story showing that duty comes first with
these dogs. What other picture of this dog has Sir Edwin Landseer
painted? Why do you think he was especially fond of Newfoundland dogs?


=To the Teacher:= Short stories of the bravery and faithfulness of
dogs may take the place of other talks on kindness to animals.

SUBJECTS FOR COMPOSITIONS

  A Description of a Newfoundland Dog.
  How a Dog Saved a Child from Drowning.
  The Smartest Dog I Ever Saw.
  The Bravest Dog I Ever Heard of.
  A Description of a St. Bernard Dog.
  How to Treat a Dog.
  Why We Should Be Kind to Dogs.


=The story of the artist.= When Edwin Landseer was a small boy he
lived in the country. Nearly every day at breakfast the father would
ask his boys, "What shall we draw to-day?" The three boys would take
turns choosing and sometimes they would vote on it. Then out across
the fields the father and his boys would tramp until they came to
where the donkeys, sheep, goats, and cows were grazing. Each would
choose the animal he wished to draw; then the four would sit down on
the grass and make their sketches. Edwin's first choice for a subject
was a cow, and his father helped him draw it.

When he was five years old he drew a picture of a dog asleep on the
floor that was very much better than any his older brothers could do,
and so even then they began to expect much from him.

At this time Edwin had three dogs of his own named Brutus, Vixen, and
Boxer. They were always with him, and so intelligent they almost
seemed to speak.

In their back yard the children had several pens for pet rabbits and
they kept pigeons in the attic of their house. The story is told of
how Mr. Landseer once decided to move, selected the house, and thought
all was settled, when the landlord refused to rent the house to him
because he kept so many animals and birds as pets.

We read of how the father and his sons made many visits to the
Zoölogical Gardens where they could watch and make sketches of lions,
bears, and other wild animals. One day they saw a strange sight in one
of the store windows in London--a large Newfoundland dog caring for a
lion. The lion had been caught in Africa when it was very little and
had been cared for by this dog. They had never been separated. Now,
although the lion was much larger than the dog, they were still the
best of friends.

Sometimes the dog would punish the lion if it did not behave, and the
great beast would whimper just as if it could not help itself. All
three boys made many sketches of this strange pair and could hardly be
persuaded to leave the window.

Every one knew of Sir Edwin Landseer and wanted some one of his
pictures of dogs because it looked so much like a dog they knew.

In the story of the picture "Highland Shepherd's Chief Mourner," are
further particulars of the life of Sir Edwin Landseer.


=Questions about the artist.= What other picture have we studied by
this artist? Tell about Sir Edwin Landseer's boyhood. How did the
brothers decide where to go to sketch? How old was Edwin when he drew
a very good picture of a dog? What was the dog doing? Tell about
Edwin's dogs; the other pets. Why did the landlord refuse to rent
Edwin's father a house? Tell about the Newfoundland dog and the lion.
What else can you tell about the artist's life?



[Illustration]

PILGRIM EXILES


=Questions to arouse interest.= Describe this picture. Where are these
people? Who are they? Who were the Pilgrims? Where are they looking?
Why do you think they may be homesick or sad? What time of day do you
think it is? (Notice the shadows.) What time of year does it seem to
be? How is the man dressed? the two women? What relation do you think
these people are to each other? Upon what is the older woman sitting?
What can you see in the distant background?


      =Artist:= George Henry Boughton (bô´´t[.o]n).
      =Birthplace:= Norwich, England.
      =Dates:= Born, 1833; died, 1905.


=The story of the picture.= We all know how, long ago, that sturdy
band of one hundred and two Puritans left England in the small and
storm-beaten ship called the _Mayflower_. They were called Puritans
because they were dissatisfied with the religion of the Church of
England, and demanded purification of all the old observances and
doctrines.

When they began to establish in England separate churches of their own,
they were driven from place to place. They longed for a land where they
could worship God in their own way, so they came to America, determined
to endure every danger and to trust in God to care for them. Their
wanderings from place to place had given them a new name, "Pilgrim,"
which means "wanderer." Then, ever since their landing on the rock at
Plymouth, they have been called Pilgrim Fathers.

There were many women and children in this band of wanderers. On the
journey a little baby was born and was called Oceanus after the great
rolling ocean.

The Pilgrims endured many hardships in those first few years, and none
more distressing than the frequent attacks by the Indians, who
resented the strangers' presence in a land which belonged to them. The
Pilgrims carried their guns with them even when they went to church,
for they never knew just when they might be attacked.

They arrived in the fall of the year, too late to plant grain or to
put by enough provisions for the winter, so they were quite dependent
upon the provision boat from England. Often this boat was long delayed
because of storms at sea, or because the people in England did not
send it on time. This caused much suffering and distress.

In our picture we see three of the first settlers of our New England
coast, waiting for the provision ship. The waves come rolling in to
this rough and barren shore, but as far as the eye can see there is
yet no sign of the awaited boat. On that point of land in the distance
are a few rude houses which must be the homes of the Pilgrims. This
dreary place, so bleak and barren, makes us wonder how they could ever
hope to survive the perils of a winter there.

Our interest is centered upon the three figures at the right in the
picture. One can almost read the thoughts expressed in the three
faces. The figure of the man stands out strong and erect, and there is
that in his fixed gaze which tells us his thoughts are far away. No
doubt he is thinking of his old home across the ocean. He is homesick,
yet go back he would not; there is no sign of discouragement. His
wife, standing beside him, places her hand on his shoulder to comfort
him, but she too looks as if she were thinking of that other home and
the friends across the sea. Her gentle, refined face is saddened for
the moment, yet in it we see expressed the fine courage which has
carried her thus far along the way.

The mother, seated on the great rock, has the same thoughtful,
far-away gaze. Her hands, clasped in her lap, have more of resignation
and patience in them. Probably her thoughts and affections are
centered in the two dear ones beside her, and in their welfare, rather
than in the friends across the sea.

Notice the Puritan dress, cloaks, shoes, caps, and collars. These
people are well dressed, and do not seem to be poor. Perhaps they are
simply longing to hear from their friends, and hoping the ship will
bring some news of them. It may be that it has been due for several
days, and each day they have walked out to this same rocky point,
hoping to see it on the distant horizon.

They are dressed in warm clothes. From that fact and from the half-bare
branches of the bush that we see growing beside the rock in the
foreground of the picture we should judge it to be the fall of the year.

Standing in the bright sunlight, they look anxiously out toward the
rolling ocean. The length of the shadows makes us think it must be
late in the afternoon.

When at last they catch a glimpse of the dark masts of the approaching
ship they will send a glad shout along the shore, and soon the beach
will be crowded with an anxious throng of people hoping for some
message or news from home.

At what seems to be a long distance from the shore the great ship will
cast anchor and send out its rowboats filled with passengers, mail,
and provisions. How eagerly the homesick people will crowd around the
new arrivals and welcome them! Our three friends will not be standing
quiet and alone, but each will be hurrying about to help the others.
The spirit of helpfulness was very strong in those days of hardship
and toil.

Notice the arrangement of lights and shadows in this picture. Our eye
is first attracted to the faces of these three Pilgrims, then carried
almost in a circle to the ocean, the rocks at the left side of the
picture, to the rock the mother is seated upon, and back to the three
faces. Start where we please the play of light leads us back to the
three faces brought out by the white collars. Suppose we start with
the mother's hands, our eyes follow her apron, the man's shoes, the
light on the grass and ocean, then to the man's face and on around.
Without these echoes of light, the picture would be unbalanced and
much less interesting.

Half close your eyes and study the picture. There is not a single
straight line in the composition. Notice the placing of the horizon
line, of the distant shore. The artist started his landscape much as
we do, with a rectangular space divided into two parts by the horizon
line. He chose for his picture a small division for sky; the larger
space to be divided into less than half as much water as land. Instead
of standing so the shore line would appear exactly horizontal, he
chose a position where the near shore line and that of the distant
point of land are at an angle, thus relieving the monotony.

The tall, determined figure of the man, and his gentle wife, standing
silhouetted against the sky, hold the ground space and the sky space
together, while the mother seated on the rock serves as another
connecting link. All the figures serve to unite the different parts of
the picture into an effect of unity most gratifying to the eye.


=Questions to help the pupil understand the picture.= Tell about the
Puritans. Why were they so called? Why did they leave England? In
what boat did they sail? To what country did they come? Why were they
then called Pilgrims? Why did they have such a hard time in this
country? Upon what were they dependent? Why was the boat often
delayed? What are the three people in our picture waiting for? What do
the expressions in their faces tell us? How can we tell what time of
year it is? the time of day? What will they do when they see the boat?
Who will join them? Where will they come from? What can you see of
their homes? Why are they so anxious to have the boat come? Why cannot
the ship land at this beach? How will it land its passengers and
freight? What do you suppose these three people will be doing then?
What can you say of the composition of this picture? What did the
artist consider first? What holds the ground and the sky spaces
together? What can you say of the light and shade in this picture? Why
is the picture called "Pilgrim Exiles"?


=The story of the artist.= George Henry Boughton was born near
Norwich, England, but when he was only a year old his parents came to
America. He grew up and was educated at Albany, New York, where he
first began to paint.

As soon as he started to school he showed great skill at drawing, by,
as he says, "drawing every mortal thing that came under my notice."

When he was nineteen years old he sold enough of his sketches to pay
his way back to London, England. He spent several months in England,
sketching wherever he went. When he came back to New York he painted a
picture called "Winter Twilight," which marked the beginning of his
success. Later he spent a year in Paris, finally making his permanent
home in London.

His studio in New York City was given up, but, although he lived in
England, his art remained distinctly American.

He was especially interested in the history and literature of our
country and has been called "the interpreter and illuminator of New
England life in the seventeenth century."

Besides painting, he wrote for magazines, illustrating his own stories
with great success.


=Questions about the artist.= Tell about the artist. Where was he
born? Where did he grow up? How old was he when he came to America? In
what did he excel at school? When did he go back to England? How did
he earn the money? What did he do when he came back? Of what country
did he paint the most pictures? What part of our history interested
him especially? In what else was he successful besides painting?



[Illustration]

DANCE OF THE NYMPHS


=Questions to arouse interest.= Of what is this a picture? What time
of the year do you think it is? what time of the day? What are the
people doing? Half close your eyes and look at the picture. What do
you see first? what next? Where is the sun? How do you know? (Look at
the trunks of the trees and the shadows.) What do you see in the
foreground to the left? to the right? Do you like this scene? why?


      =Original Picture:= Luxembourg Gallery, Paris, France.
      =Artist:= Jean Baptiste Camille Corot (k[+o]´r[+o]´´).
      =Birthplace:= Paris, France.
      =Dates:= Born, 1796; died, 1875.


=The story of the picture.= The artist who painted this picture, Jean
Baptiste Corot, tells us that when he was a small boy he used to lean
out of his window at night, long after his mother and father thought
him safe in bed, to watch the clouds, the sky, and the trees. He
continued this study as a young man, and soon made friends with three
other young men, all artists (Rousseau, Daubigny, and Dupré) who were
also studying nature. All had studios and painted in the city; but
they were always longing for a glimpse of the country. One day the
four started out together for a day's outing, each taking his
painter's outfit. They went to the end of the omnibus line from Paris
and then started on foot for a long tramp across the country. It was
then they thought of the great Forest of Fontainebleau, where nature
was wild and undisturbed in its wondrous beauty.

"We will go to that beautiful forest and spend our vacation there,"
they said.

And so it came about several weeks later. In this forest, at all times
of the day or night, they could be found wandering about, searching
out new vistas and discovering new wonders and beauties in nature.

They hid their paints and brushes in the rocks to keep them from the
dew, and they themselves slept under the spreading branches of the
great oak trees. These city-bred young men, brought up in the rush and
hurry of the great city of Paris, cared for no other shelter than the
wide expanse of sky and the protecting branches of the trees.

So when we know that later Corot came to live near this Forest of
Fontainebleau, it is easy to guess where he painted this picture
called the "Dance of the Nymphs." Sometimes this picture is called
"Morning," for Corot painted another picture much like this one, and
called it, "The Dance of the Nymphs, Evening."

Corot is often spoken of as the "happy one," and many stories are told
of him and how surprising it was to hear him singing lustily as he
painted. Seated on his camp stool before his easel, wearing his blue
calico blouse and painter's hat, he was indeed happy. He is described
as adding the finishing touches to one of his landscapes in this way:

"Let us put that there--tra, la, tra, la,--a little boy,--ding dong,
ding dong! Oh, a little boy, he wants a cap--la, la, la, la, tra la!"

People always smiled when they saw Corot start out, carrying his
easel, paints, and brushes, and singing or whistling like a care-free
boy. But it happened more often that they saw him going toward home
in the evening, for he had a way of starting out before sunrise when
nobody was about and seating himself in some lovely spot in the woods,
waiting breathlessly to see what would happen next.

That is what he did the morning he sketched this picture. The grass
was heavy with dew, the birds were still asleep, all was quiet and
covered with the veil of night. As the mist slowly lifted, the great
trees gradually assumed definite shapes, the birds awoke, the sun
shone forth, and all was bright and fresh as the early mornings in
spring always are. Look at this picture, then close your eyes and open
them slowly, and you yourself can see just such an awakening to life.

Is it any wonder then that, as Corot sat, pencil in hand, this lovely
spring morning and watched the trees gradually take shape against the
slowly lightening sky, and listened to the birds singing their morning
greeting, he should fancy he saw the fairy wood nymphs come out from
their secret hiding places and dance joyously about in the bright
morning sunlight? It seems most natural indeed that they should be
there, and dancing, too. The mere fact of being alive on such a
morning as this fills us too with delight.

When Corot began to paint his large picture from the small sketch he
made in the woods that morning, he must have sung his merriest tunes.
The picture seems full of music, from the quivering leaves, the waving
grass, and the shifting clouds to the dancing figures. Although there
is not a bird in sight, we know that they are there, and it takes very
little imagination to hear them singing.

At the right-hand side of the picture one of the wood nymphs has
seized the hand of a timid companion, urging her to come and join in
the frolic. So much are we in sympathy with those merry ones that we
too find ourselves unconsciously urging her to join in the dance.

When he painted trees, Corot did not pay very great attention to
details, and so we cannot always tell what kind of trees they were. He
cared most to make us feel the beauty of the sunlight on their tender
leaves, their growth, and the protection they offer to birds and men.

A young art student once approached Corot and asked him why he left so
many things out of his pictures and put others in. Then pointing to a
certain tree in Corot's painting he said, "This tree is not in the
landscape." Corot smiled, then whispered to him, "Don't you tell, but
I put it there to please the birds."

It would be difficult indeed to find a single straight line in our
picture, so full is it of rhythmic curves, from the treetops to the
graceful figures in the foreground. The skillful blending of colors,
of light and shade, gives it that mysterious, misty quality which is
one of its chief charms. Corot's favorite colors were pale green, gray
browns, and silvery grays. One little touch of bright color in his
pictures makes them alive. The costumes of the nymphs were chosen for
the very few bright touches in this painting, and the tall, slender
tree near the left-hand side of the picture for the pale green
feathery foliage of early spring.

Our eye moves pleasantly through all the leafy maze of this enchanted
forest. We are at the edge of the woods. Looking out through the trees
we see the wide, open fields beyond, with their high canopy of sky,
and we feel a new contentment steal over us as our eye again seeks
this sheltered nook in the great Forest of Fontainebleau.


=Questions to help the pupil understand the picture.= How had the
artist, Corot, studied the clouds, sky, and trees? With whom did he
become friends? What were these three young artists doing? Where did
they go for an outing? What did they take with them? What forest did
they decide would be a good place to spend a vacation? How did they
live in this forest? What shelter did they have? What nickname did
they give Corot? How did he like to paint? How did he dress? What did
he do while painting? Where was this picture painted? What is it
sometimes called? What time of day did he usually start out to paint?
What are the nymphs doing? What did Corot wish to tell us about the
trees? What did a young art student once ask Corot? What was the
answer? Of what kind of lines is this picture made up? What colors
were used? Where are the bright colors? In what part of the forest is
this picture? What can you see through the open space?


=The story of the artist.= From the very first all things seemed to
favor Corot. Of a naturally happy disposition, born into a family of
means, and all his life free from financial worries, everything seemed
to combine to make his life one of care-free ease and pleasure.

His father and mother kept a millinery store; this must have been a
good business, for they soon accumulated a comfortable fortune.

At ten years of age Corot was sent away to school at Rouen in the hope
of making a business man of him. He lived with a friend of his father
who was a serious man but also a great lover of nature. Corot took
many a long walk with him over narrow, unfrequented paths. They took
these walks usually at the close of the day, and so Corot's love of
the twilight hour grew strong.

Upon his return to Paris seven years later, his father placed him in a
drygoods store, where he remained for nearly nine years. Whenever
there were no customers the boy would hide under the counter and draw.
His employer was a good-natured man and he sympathized with Corot in
his desire to be a painter. So he told the father it was of no use to
try to make a business man of him as his tastes were all for art.

About this time Corot went to his father and asked his permission to
study painting. The father was not at all pleased with the idea, but
decided to let him try. He told his son he had set aside a certain sum
of money to start him in business for himself and he could choose that
or a small income which would be allowed him for the study of art. If
he chose the latter, however, he must not expect any other help from
his father, as he did not approve of this new venture. But Corot
embraced his father most affectionately and declared he had made him
the happiest person in the world. He then proceeded at once to the
nearest store and bought a complete painter's outfit. Choosing a spot
by the river near his father's house, he began to paint. He tells us
how the girls who worked in the millinery store slipped away and came
to see what he was doing. He never parted with this first painting,
but kept it as a reminder of his great happiness when he was at last
free to do "what he most desired in the world."

He studied under several artists, but received little encouragement
until he went to Rome to study.

Most of the paintings of that time were classical, including Greek
temples, shepherds, nymphs, or dryads, and such trees as cedars and
palms. That is why Millet's simple peasants and Corot's misty
landscapes were not appreciated.

At Rome, Corot became a great favorite among the students because of
his happy nature and the rollicking, jolly songs he could sing. But as
for his pictures,--they were considered very amusing.

However, one day as he sat sketching the Coliseum a friend who was
regarded as an authority on landscape painting praised his work. Corot
looked around expecting to be laughed at, but no,--the man was in
earnest. That evening, before all the other students, he remarked that
Corot might some day become the master of them all. This gave him
standing among the artists and was greatly appreciated by Corot, who
always felt that this praise was the beginning of his success. It was
not long after this that his pictures were exhibited and many honors
came to him.

Does it seem strange that Corot and Millet, looking upon the same
woods and people, living and painting so near each other, should
choose such different subjects? Corot saw the same poor, toilworn
peasants, and he helped them most generously when they asked him, but
as for painting them--he did not think of it. Millet saw the same
beautiful woods, fields, and sky, and loved them all, but to him the
peasant came first.

He said, "Corot's pictures are beautiful, but they do not reveal
anything new."

Corot said, "Millet's painting is for a new world; I do not feel at
home there. I am too much attracted to the old. I see therein great
knowledge, air, and depth, but it frightens me; I love better my
little music."

In speaking of another artist he said, "He is an eagle; I am only a
skylark. I send forth little songs in my gray clouds."

As success came to Corot he was most generous in helping others. Many
young artists came to study with him, but he would accept no pay for
his instruction and gladly did all he could to encourage and help them.

He did not have the heart to turn a beggar from his door, and often
had as many as twenty-five come to him in a day. The story is told of
a beggar who demanded a larger sum of money than Corot usually gave,
and was refused. After he left, the artist could not paint; his day
was spoiled. So he hurriedly ran out after the beggar, gave him the
money, and all was well again.

During the siege of Paris he gave both time and money to help the
wounded. "Papa Corot," as the people called him, was greatly beloved.

The demand for his paintings increased. He said that when youth left
him, honor and fame came to make him still the happiest man in the
world.


=Questions about the artist.= In what ways was Corot favored? What did
his father and mother do? What did they hope to make of Corot? Where
was he sent? With whom did he live? Where did they walk? How did this
influence Corot? Upon his return home, what did he do? What did his
employer finally do? What did Corot ask his father? What offer did his
father make? What did Corot decide? What did he do at once? Who came
to watch him? What became of this first painting? Where did Corot go
to study? What subjects did most of the artists of Corot's time choose
to paint? What happened that raised Corot in their estimation? Compare
the subjects chosen by Corot and Millet. Tell about Corot and the
beggar. Why did Corot claim to be the happiest man in the world? Does
this picture make you feel happy or sad? why?

[Illustration: OXEN PLOWING]



OXEN PLOWING


=Questions to arouse interest.= How many of you have ever watched oxen
plowing? How are these oxen geared together? How many oxen usually
draw one plow? Why do you think they use so many in the field? With
what part of the body do the oxen pull the plow? Why is the earth
plowed? How can you tell that the soil these men are plowing is moist
and fertile? In what direction is the sun? (Look at the shadows.) How
is the driver urging the oxen on? Where is the farm house? What do you
consider most interesting about the oxen?


      =Original Picture:= Luxembourg Gallery, Paris, France.
      =Artist:= Rosa Bonheur (b[+o]´nûr´´).
      =Birthplace:= Bordeaux, France.
      =Dates:= Born, 1822; died, 1899.


=The story of the picture.= It must have been very early in the
morning indeed when these men and their oxen started to plow this
great field, for although the sun is still low in the sky, each group
of oxen has already plowed two furrows. By those long shadows and the
light in the sky we know the sun cannot be very high in the heavens,
and there is that about the ground, the occupation, and the distant
trees that suggests the season, spring.

We are told that Rosa Bonheur went out into the country to paint this
picture, and that she had a small shed made into a studio where she
could keep her canvas and paints. Every evening when she came home her
father would ask anxiously about the picture, for he was not well
enough to go to see it and he knew Rosa was working very hard on it.

Even her genius could not make it possible for her to paint such a
picture as this without much preparation. In fact, she had been
preparing for it for years,--as far back as when she made her first
drawing of oxen, and then later when she went to the packing houses
and made separate studies of each part of an ox. She knew just how
those great muscles did their work, and just how the curving ribs and
the joints did their part. In this picture she shows us just enough of
their movements to make us feel the great strength and power of those
patient animals.

Our wonder grows anew that even one such powerful ox can be controlled
by man's will. It is plain to see that the ox nearest us, of the
middle pair, does resent the prodding with the stick which the driver
uses so vigorously. His great eye rolls and he looks indignant, but
it is only for the moment--he accepts all with resignation and
indifference, knowing that it will be the turn of one of the other
oxen next. These oxen are geared together by a central pole which is
fastened to their horns. This causes them to take the entire weight of
the plow with their horns instead of with their shoulders as our
horses do. It would seem to be a most uncomfortable arrangement, yet
they are used to it.

The leaders must be chosen very carefully if the farmer would have a
straight furrow. It seems as if these first two oxen in the picture
feel the responsibility, and are glad and willing to do their part.
There is a look of intelligence about them that makes us certain that
they know and understand the worth of the thing they are doing.

Oxen in our country are driven by the words "gee," meaning turn to the
right, and "haw," turn to the left. However, the drivers in this
picture would not use these words, for they are Frenchmen, and would
speak to them in their own language.

It is easy to tell that the ground is soft by the way the feet of the
oxen sink down into it, and by the man's wooden shoe which has half
slipped off his foot as he starts to lift it from the ground. On this
quiet, peaceful morning we can almost hear the heavy tread of the
oxen as they pass us, and the harsh call of the drivers as they urge
them on. In imagination we can smell the freshly plowed earth. To be
sure, it is a hard pull up the hill, but how cheerfully, even proudly,
the oxen pull their load! Look at their backs; you will see a slanting
line which emphasizes the fact that they are climbing a hill. This
line is broken somewhat by the slant of the woods in the distance.
Cover up these distant woods with the hand or a piece of paper and we
immediately have the uncomfortable feeling that the oxen are going to
slip back out of the picture.

In this picture the artist has portrayed the intelligent use man makes
of the power and strength of animals and of the soil. We see so few
oxen now that we wonder why they were so much used in those days; but
of course we know it was because the farmers did not have the
machinery for tilling the ground, sowing, and planting grain that we
have. Horses were used also, but oxen were cheaper, so all could
afford them. Then, too, oxen may have been chosen because of their
superior strength, steadiness, and patience.

The artist has centered our attention on the nearest of the two first
pairs of oxen. The other oxen and driver are of secondary importance
and the landscape itself last of all. The artist has accomplished this
by color, light, and shade, and by a more careful treatment of the
nearest oxen, showing plainly their intelligent eyes, wrinkled hides,
and even the play of muscles as they step forward, pulling their heavy
load.

Rosa Bonheur finished this painting only a short time before her father
died. As soon as he saw it he knew that his daughter had painted a
masterpiece, and almost his last words were in praise of her work.


=Questions to help the pupil understand the picture.= Why do you think
these men and oxen must have started to work very early? Why do you
think it is still early? What time of year do you think it is? why?
Where did Rosa Bonheur paint this picture? Where did she keep her
canvas and paints? What preparation did she make before painting the
picture? What is the driver doing? In what humor does the nearest ox
seem to be? How are the oxen geared together? Why must they have good
leaders? How are oxen driven? Why do you think these drivers would not
use the same words that we should? How can you tell that the ground is
soft? Do you think the oxen are pulling hard? Why did they use oxen so
much in those days? What are used now? Upon which of the oxen has the
artist centered our attention? What is next in importance? last of
all? How has the artist done this? What did Rosa Bonheur's father
think of this picture?


=To the Teacher:=

SUBJECTS FOR COMPOSITIONS

  The Picture and What It Represents.
  How This Picture Was Painted.
  What I Would Consider Most Important in a Picture.
  Why I Like This Picture.
  Rosa Bonheur as a Little Girl.
  Rosa Bonheur as an Artist.


=The story of the artist.= Marie Rosalie Bonheur spent the first ten
years of her life in a little country town. It was almost as good as
living in the country, for Rosa and her two brothers spent most of
their time in the woods or fields. At home they had lambs, rabbits,
and squirrels for pets.

The father was an artist, and since he could not sell many pictures in
such a little village he decided to move to the great city of Paris. The
children liked the gay city with its many surprises, but they missed the
woods and their pets. The first place in which they lived was up several
flights of stairs and across the street from a butcher's shop. This shop
had a queer sign. It was a wild boar roughly carved out of wood, but it
looked so much like the little pet pig Rosa had in the country that she
used to stop and pet it every time she passed that way.

A man who lived in the same house with the Bonheur family kept a small
school for boys. Rosa's two brothers went to this school, and after a
while the teacher said Rosa might come too. She was the only girl in
the school, but she did not mind that at all. The boys were glad to
have her with them, for she knew more games than they did and played
just like one of them.

Her father did not do so well with his painting as he had hoped, so
they moved into a cheaper house. It was here that Rosa's mother died.
The father was obliged to send his children where they could be well
cared for, so the baby daughter, Juliette, was sent to her
grandmother, the two boys to school, and Rosa went to live with an
aunt. This aunt sent her to school. To reach the schoolhouse Rosa had
to walk some distance through the woods. Sometimes she would stop and
smooth the dust in the road with her hand and then draw pictures in it
with a stick. Even then she liked to draw pictures of animals best of
all. Often she had such a good time drawing that she forgot to go to
school, or was very late, so she did not get along very well and was
delighted when her father came to take her home. He had married again
and wanted all his children with him. How happy they were!

A great many stories have been told about the pets they kept in their
house. Rosa's brother Isidore carried a little lamb on his shoulders
down six flights of stairs every morning and evening, that it might
nibble the green grass and be out in the fresh air. It became a great
pet, and all the children drew its picture in ever so many different
positions. Besides, they had a parrot, a monkey, two dogs, and some
rabbits and birds for pets. Their father let them keep these pets in a
room fitted especially for them.

The father taught in a private school at that time, and was away from
home all day, but when he came home at night Rosa would show him what
she had been doing while he was gone. Once she had been painting
cherries, and her father came home while she was at work on them. He
praised her very much and helped her finish painting them.

In the evening Rosa, her two brothers, and her father used to put
their easels in different parts of the big room and draw and paint
until it was quite late. They would all much rather do this than
anything else in the world, and it was the only time their father
could help them.

The father belonged to a religious order called the "Saint Simonians."
The members wore queer gowns and bonnets with long tassels. Such a
bonnet with a big tassel Rosa wore on the street, and sometimes boys
shouted and laughed at her, but she paid no attention to that.

The father secured a teaching position in another private school and
earned enough money to send his three children there and give them all
they needed at home.

Rosa did not behave very well in school. Often she was punished,
sometimes by being given nothing to eat but bread and water. Every one
liked her, however, for she was good-hearted, kind, and full of fun.
But finally she did something that could not be overlooked. This is
what she did. The lady who kept the school was very fond of flowers,
and above all she loved the stately hollyhocks. She had a beautiful
bed of them in the front yard of the school that was very much admired
by all who passed. One day Rosa had been reading in the history about
war, and she thought it would be fine fun to arrange a battle between
the school girls. They used wooden sticks for swords. Very soon the
girls on Rosa's side drove their enemies toward the hollyhock bed,
where they turned and fled. Seeing the hollyhocks standing guard like
soldiers, Rosa thought it would be fun to charge upon them, which she
did, cutting off all their heads with her stick. Is it any wonder she
was sent home in disgrace?

Her father then sent her to a dressmaker to see if she could learn
that trade, but Rosa did not like dressmaking and finally went home
without having learned very much. Then some friends gave her some
photographs to color. This she liked to do, so her father decided that
the only thing to do was to let her paint.

Rosa was willing to walk miles in all kinds of weather, to sit hours
in all kinds of uncomfortable positions, and to go without food in
order to draw a good picture of some animal. Now she began her study
of animals in earnest. She went to all the country horse fairs, to the
slaughter houses, and wherever there was an opportunity to study them.

Rosa never had very pretty clothes. She tells us herself that one day
a parrot called after her "Ha, ha! That hat!" Now that she was grown
up she found she could not get about very easily in her long skirts.
There were so many rough men in the packing houses and in other places
where she must go to study that she obtained a permit to wear men's
clothing. Her hair was short, anyway, and with her blue working blouse
and dark trousers she looked just like a man. Then no one noticed her
as she went about, for they thought her one of the workmen. People who
knew her did not mind her dress, and were ready to help her as much as
they could in her work. The first picture she exhibited was of some
little rabbits nibbling carrots.

Her pictures became famous the world over. From all over the country
she received gifts of fine horses and other animals to paint. Buffalo
Bill once sent her two fine horses from Texas. She bought a farm, and
had a very large barn built where she could keep her animals.

How proud her father was of her!

One day she was working hard in her studio when a servant came to tell
her that the Empress Eugénie had come to see her. It was a great event
when this royal lady came to the artist's studio; and there was Rosa
dressed in her old blue blouse covered with paint! She did not have
time even to slip it off before the empress came in, but they had a
most delightful visit. As the Empress Eugénie bent over and kissed
Rosa Bonheur, she pinned the Cross of the Legion of Honor on the
artist's blue blouse. Rosa did not notice it until after the Empress
was gone. How pleased she must have been, for she was the first woman
to receive that honor.


=Questions about the artist.= What is the artist's full name? Where
did she live the first ten years of her life? What did the father do
for a living? Why did they move to the city? How did the children like
this change? In what kind of a house did they live? Tell about Rosa
and the wild boar; the school for boys. Why did they move? What became
of the children after their mother died? Why was Rosa often late to
school? Who came to take her home? Tell about the new home and the
pets; Isidore and the lamb. How did they all spend their evenings?
Tell about the "Saint Simon" bonnet. How did Rosa behave at the
private school? Tell about Rosa and the hollyhocks. How was she
punished? What trade did her father wish her to learn? What was she
willing to do in order to paint pictures? Where did she go to study
animals? How did she dress? Why did she dress like a man? What
presents did she receive? Where did she keep them? Tell about the
visit of the Empress Eugénie. How did she honor Rosa Bonheur?



THE SUGGESTIONS TO TEACHERS


=Studying the picture.= Several days before the lesson is to be taken
up, the picture to be studied should be placed where every pupil can
see it.

First of all, the children should find out for themselves what is in
the picture. The questions accompanying the story of each picture are
intended to help them to do this.

=Language work.= The pupils should be encouraged in class to talk
freely and naturally. In this way the lesson becomes a language
exercise in which the pupils will gain in freedom of expression and in
the ability to form clear mental images.

If a lesson does not occupy the entire drawing period, the children
should be asked to retell the story of the picture.

=Dramatization and drawing.= Most of the stories told by the pictures
lend themselves readily to dramatization and, whenever practicable,
such stories should be acted out. The stories also offer numerous
interesting situations that may be used as subjects for drawing
lessons.

=The review lesson.= The review lesson should cover all pictures and
artists studied throughout the year. At this time other pictures
available, by the same artists should be on exhibition.

The review work may be conducted as a contest in which the pictures
are held up, one at a time, while the class writes the name of the
picture and the artist on slips of paper which have been prepared and
numbered for that purpose. One teacher who used this device surprised
her class by presenting those whose lists were correct with their
choice of any of the large-sized Perry pictures studied.

Many teachers, however, will prefer to use this time for composition
work, although the description of pictures is often given as an
English lesson. Pupils may write a description of their favorite
picture. In fact, the lessons can be made to correlate with history,
geography, English, spelling, reading, or nature study.

In any event the real purpose of the work is that the pupils shall
become so familiar with the pictures that they will recognize them as
old friends whenever and wherever they may see them.

It is hoped that acquaintance with the picture and the interest
awakened by its story will grow into a fuller appreciation and
understanding of the artist's work. Thus the children will have many
happy hours and will learn to love the good, the true, and the
beautiful in everything about them.



Transcriber's Note:


* Some words have accents of different weights. The heavier accent is
  marked double (´´). (Example: bo´nûr´´)

* Pg 2 Replaced colon with a semi-colon after "1814" located in
  "Born, 1814:".

* Pg 51 (k[+o]´r[+o]´´) and Pg 63 (b[+o]´nûr´´) contains the + symbol
  representing an "up tack" not represented in any charts.





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