poiile iiiouillce, and shrank from cold and damp. Hence-
forth she dared not go beyond the garden after sunset.
She would look longingly through the great gates at
the ' holy horror ' of the darkening foliage, and she,
who had never cared for big armchairs when she could
sit or lie under the trees, had now to spend the long
lovely evenings indoor.?. She is ready to die of eiiiiiii ;
at last it is too much, and she goes back to Paris.
The ultimate verdict of this great lady on a country
life is : 'II faut une grande sante pour soutenir la
solitude, et la campagne.'
Much more might be told of the life at Les Rochers
between l647 and I696 : of poor Madame du Plessis,
who was so constant in her visits, and was so merci-
lessly laughed at and hoaxed by everybody ; of I.a pelite
personne, who could not make out whether the day
after Easter Eve was a Monday or a Tuesday ; of the
good old Abbe de Coulanges, the Bien-bon, who spent
liis.life in looking after Ics beaux t/eux of Madame de
Sevigne's cassette. Then there were the festivities at
Vitre, to which, as a great landholder in the province,
Madame de Sevigne was bound to go during the session
of the Assembly. She describes with infinite amuse-
ment how the tables groaned with fantastic dishes ;
how the pyramids of fruit could not be brought through
the doors without having their tops knocked of; how
they dressed and how they danced ; how she was
dying of hunger in the midst of plenty ; and above all,
how glad she was to find herself at home again out of
the bustle and turmoil. Such is the ' divine chit-chat'
with which Madame de Sevigne was wont to amuse
her absent daughter. It is a pity that these letters,
which lie open to every cultivated person, should be so
seldom read nowadays. There is a delicate flavour
in the original which scarcely survives translation, a
grace and a bloom which droops and fades when it is
torn away from its native soil.
Isabel Sidgwick.
NOTES AND REVIEWS.
The Society of Lady Artists. — The decoration of palms, and festoons of faint radda-ion&A draperies may add to the general air of prettiness which pervades the exhibition, and which detracts from that serious impression works of art shoidd, we think, produce upon the mind. A closer inspection of the works on the walls reveals, however, much that is clever and praiseworthy. We must admit at once that the personal note is largely lacking in these pictures by lady artists, and with it is lacking art's most fascinating appeal. Conscientious work, a delicate appreciation and graceful rendering of some of Nature's tranquil moods, some evidences of sympathetic and humorous observation of animals, good still-life painting, and a few clever genre pictures and portraits are to be found in the exhibition. As a rule, the somewhat precise touch of lady artists imparts a dulness to their technique ; it often lacks the brio which is the most intimate expression of the temperament of the painter. Miss Clara Montalba's 'The Old Watchtower, Amsterdam' (242), occupies the place of honour, and occupies it deservedly. The spirited touch, the luminous colour, the fine grouping of the sails and buildings in the shadow, are true painter's work. About Miss Montalba's picture are grouped paintings contributed by some of the better- known lady artists. Henrietta Rae (Mrs. Norman) sends ' Sylvia ' (248), a delicately painted profile ; Miss Jessie MacGregor a some- what heavily painted ' God of Love' (235), wearing a necklace of roses; Miss Blanche Jenkins 'Little Buttercup' (241), a dainty little maid, archly smiling at us from under the brim of her butter- cup garlanded hat. Like all Miss Jenkins' winsome children, she dates her descent from one of Sir Joshua Reynolds's immortal little ones. Miss Emily Osborn sends 'Algerian Mirror' (255), and from her floating studio on a barge ' Norfolk Wherries ' (219) and ' Sunset on the Bure ' (229), sketcljes that have the freshness of work done in the very heart of nature. To our thinking almost the best picture in the exhibition is M. E. Kindon's ' Free Seats ' (345). It is strong and pathetic in conception, and the technique is workmanlike. The physiognomies of the little group of poor in the corner of a church are well individualised ; it is one of the few pictures in the exhibition that lingers on the mind. Miss Bertha Newcome sends two open-air studies (227, 231). The crudeness of colour which marks the painting of the French fkin air school is repeated in Miss Newcome's representations of nature. Her work is interesting, sincere, ugly, and decidedly 'impressionist.' We miss from the exhibition Mrs. Adrian Stokes's forcible pictures and- sketches of peasant children and women. Miss Henrietta Corkran's ' Harmony in Brown and Gold,' the portrait in pastels of a lady in dark russet, tan, and amber draperies, is spirited and harmonious. There is a pleasant ' go ' in the expression and pose. Among the portraits in pastels is a clever boy's head (29) by Miss Ellen Partridge. From Mrs. Jopling's prolific brush we have a large painting of ' Charlotte Corday ' {319). We absolutely refuse to believe that this good-looking young lady in red ever assassinated Marat. Miss Moody's cats and dogs are humorously observed and cleverly painted. Miss Hilda Montalba contributes two poetic effects of Dutch landscape (520, 531). The latter, an effect of twilight creeping over the low-lying country, is delicately imaginative. The work in water-colour is on the whole superior to that done in oils. Miss Rose Barton's tenderly painted, misty ' Charing Cross ' and ' Corn Fields ' have distinction. The latter shows a true appreciation of delicate modulations of colour in the ripening fields. Kate Macaulay sends some notice- able work. The five strongly painted effects of cloud and river scenery by this lady are among the best things in the gallery. ' Rain Clouds ' (159), a study of cloud-capped mountains, is especially fine. Miss Helen O'Hara is represented by a number of delicately rendered effects of foam, sea-birds, and flying clouds. Mrs. Marrable, the Society's President, is in force with some charming sketches from the south of France and rustic English scenery. Mrs. Paul Naftel and Miss Mand Naftel's country scenes and flowers have always a quality of sweetness and freshness. 439, 4^9' 53'i by Miss Naftel, are charming examples of her work. In the still-life, in flowers, bric-a-brac, fungi, etc., in oil and water-colour painting, the ladies are especially strong. We must not omit to mention some fanciful little drawings of the goblin world by Miss Edith Mendhani. A. C.
The Wingate and M'Taggart Sales. — The Lawton Wingate Sale, which took place in the rooms of Mr. Dowell, Edinburgh, on the 9th of March last, and the M'Taggart Sale, which followed it, in the same place, on the 23d, are deserving of more detailed and specific reference than we were able to give them in our last issue. The Wingate oil pictures, 107 in number, realised a total of £-]2ii, 4s.; the M'Taggart Portfolio,' including 131 water-colours, a total of £{i,'yjo, 17s. : and these excellent prices — for works that were mostly of moderate size, comparatively slight in execution, and, all of them, destitute of any appeal to the merely popular demands of the uninstructed picture-buyer — are as encouraging a sign as could well be wished for of the discernment
