SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS AND HIS WORKS. I. AMONG the distinguished characters of the last century, who exercised great influence upon the profession or vocation to which their abilities led them, we may class SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. It is sufficient for the term of a man's life and the natural powers of his mind, that, in whatever direction his capacity may develope itself, he should continue, in order to excel, to cultivate the object to which his capacity tends, so as to make such object individual, and his own. Painting is, and has been, from the early days of the world, one of the great arts of life; and to that department of it, which is occupied in the delineation of portraits, Reynolds was throughout his life most chiefly and successfully devoted. generally having been found to bring their incipient professors into much trouble, for neglecting, in the judgment of their older and wiser friends, better and more substantial interests. Some of the most distinguished poets have been in early life educated with a view to the law; Reynolds was destined to the practice of physic. But having a natural tendency to limning, he could not nor did he attempt to restrain the impulses of nature. Hence he was deficient in the routine of scholastic learning; but, though he believed that genius and capacity were identical, and that he possessed these in reference to the arts, he did not fall into the seductive fallacy, which sometimes leads genius astray, namely, that fits of inspiration beget skill, and thereby relieve the possessor from earnest and assiduous toil. From his earliest years, therefore, till he was about nineteen years of age, his time was chiefly taken up in copying such pictures and prints as came within his reach; in taking likenesses of his friends and relations; and in perusing all such books as fell in his way, which treated of painting and perspective. Some of his performances at length struck the attention of his father, who, thereupon, by the advice of his friends, sent Joshua to London, where he began his professional studies under Hudson, the most celebrated portrait-painter of the day, on the 18th of October, 1741, which day is the festival of St. Luke, the reputed patron of painters. The legends of antiquity tell us that portraitpainting took its rise in very old times in the city of Corinth, in Greece, from the circumstance of a young woman tracing the profile of her lover by his shadow cast upon the wall by a lamp. This was to serve as a memento during a separation, which the dread concerns of war were about to inflict upon them :-and in this dwells one of the great charms and incentives to this species of painting,-a charm which incites and enchains the mind with the desire to possess, in spite of time, of absence, space, and death, such a means of calling up the features, looks, and expression of those whom we have loved and lost on earth, that they may seem to be constantly with us in this world, as we trust they will be eternally in the next. Whatever may be the merits and excellencies of all other species of painting, whether they be of a mental or mechanical kind, they cannot in this one quality compete with the tracing of portraits; for the latter ministers to the best and holiest of human propensities, and excellence in this ministration is naturally and deservedly rewarded. That the painting of por-Hudson, the preceptor of Reynolds, was essentially detraits is, and has been, liberally rewarded, as conducing to gratify pride and vanity, cannot be denied : but we do not refuse the good because sullied with evil; and we do not refuse due honour to Sir Joshua, though, as Northcote remarks, he thought it his duty "to discover only the perfections of those whom he represented." The general tenor of the foregoing sentiments has been long ago confirmed by the pen of Johnson, who speaks of this department of the art as being "employed in diffusing friendship, in renewing tenderness, in quickening the affections of the absent, and continuing the presence of the dead." The exercise of of this art, he goes on to observe, every man desires "for the sake of those whom he loves, and by whom he hopes to be remembered. This use of the art is a natural and reasonable consequence of affection and though, like all other human actions, it is often complicated with pride, yet even such pride is more laudable than that by which palaces are covered with pictures, that, however excellent, neither imply the owner's virtue, nor excite it." The subject of this paper was born at Plympton, in Devonshire, in 1723, and was one of a large family. His father was a clergyman and master of the grammar school of the place. He has been accused of neglecting the education of his son; but if young Reynolds' attention was not driven to the acquirement of literature in the ordinary course, it was owing to his strong natural predilection for sketching, principally, the human features. His conscquent neglect of the pursuits, which education imposes on the young, was a source of much rebuke from his sire:-poetry, painting, and the fine arts, In the practice of portrait-painting, it has been wisely and acutely observed by those who are competent judges of the merit of it, that it is not sufficient to satisfy the judgment, to give merely an exact and mathematical likeness of an individual, if there be not imparted to the picture an expression which shall arouse in the beholder's mind such an idea of vital warmth, as we should entertain if we actually beheld the living prototype of the portrait. In this, we are told ficient; though otherwise a distinguished and accurate maker of portraits: whereas, Reynolds, by connecting the latter excellence with the former, rose, on this ground, to the very top of his profession. He remained with Hudson about three years, and then returned into Devonshire; the separation having probably taken place, in consequence of Reynolds pursuing a style of painting very much out of the ordinary beat. The event, which led to their parting was Reynolds's painting the portrait of an old servant-woman of Hudson's. This picture astonished his master, and obtained unbounded applause in the Gallery. Having acquired the friendship and patronage of several distinguished persons, Reynolds soon after returned to London, and lived for a while in St. Martin's Lane, which was then the favourite residence of artists, and where something like an Academy was established. As most of those, which are esteemed to be the best productions of the best painters of the middle ages, are congregated at Rome; and as Rome has, in consequence, been held to be the finishing academy of artists; it was only a natural desire in Reynolds about this time to visit the city of the Seven Hills. In the year 1749, after voyaging about with Commodore Keppel up the Mediterranean, he landed at Leghorn, and proceeded direct to Rome. It is a most interesting and astonishing circumstance in the history and profession of painting, that Reynolds, and many other distinguished painters, when at Rome for the purpose of viewing, studying, and imbibing the principles of the great masters, should have felt but little impression from them at the early contemplation of their performances. To describe the feelings of Sir Joshua, as he has ingenuously developed them, would be to pourtray the feelings of many other professed admirers of the fine arts, leaving their ingenuousness out of the question. The keeper of the Vatican told Reynolds that many visitors at Rome, who went to see the paintings, and Raphael's in particular, would ask, when they had seen the whole collection, where the performances of Raphael were to be found?-and would not believe, that they had already passed through the rooms where they were kept. When Reynolds found that others, even the greatest of painters, had stood in the like case with himself, in not all at once admiring and appreciating the merits of Raphael, he felt comforted; and solaced himself with the just and wise reflection, that he himself was then in the midst of works executed upon principles, with which he was at first totally unacquainted; that he had come from a country where the arts were then in a low state; that the name of Raphael, and his admirable paintings, did not owe their reputation to the ignorance and prejudice of mankind: consequently that he himself had come to the Roman School, not to congratulate himself on his own acquirements, but to relearn the principles of his art. In a short time, he tells us, a new taste and perception dawned upon him; that, instead of admiring stiff and extravagant attitudes, he began to feel the sober dignity and majestic simplicity of the illustrious Italian to be more congenial with the feelings of his own soul. Before he left Rome, therefore, he became one of the daily worshippers of these models of excellence in the art. On the other hand, he remarks, that many visitors at Rome, who had no taste or feeling for the art, made pretensions to instantaneous raptures at the sight of Raphael's works. The whole character and conduct of Reynolds in life was marked by urbanity and courtliness. His behaviour, when thrown into the way of pretenders to the art of painting, is happily sketched by Gold smith at the conclusion of his "Retaliation." The deafness of Sir Joshua, there alluded to, was brought on by a dangerous illness, which he suffered at Rome. To coxcombs averse, yet most civilly steering; When they talked of their Raphaels, Corregios, and stuff, The reader will gain some idea of the taste and genius of Sir Joshua Reynolds, from the frontispiece to the present number. "The Infant Academy" is a happy example of our artist's power in grouping and designing children, and in pourtraying the innocence of youth and childhood. By the will of Sir Joshua, the second choice was given to Lord Palmerston, of any picture of his (Sir Joshua's) own painting; and his lordship chose "The Infant Academy," which has been made known to the world through the engraving by Hayward. THE wise man, says the Bible, walks with God; Both worlds considers, and provides for both: THE following article is supplementary to an article entitled, "WHAT IS AN ALMANAC ?" p. 150, Vol. XV., of this work. The terms used at the head of this paper, are usually denominated the CHRONOLOGICAL AND COMMON NOTES of the Almanac or Calendar. THE CALENDAR is an adjustment of time, accordThe term ing to rule, for the use of society. "Calendar" is derived from an old classic word implying to call, from the circumstance of the Pontifex Maximus, the head of the ancient Roman priests, proclaiming, on the first day of the month, the date of the appearance of the new moon, and the festivals to be observed throughout the month. In the early stages of society, the progress of time was estimated by the courses of the sun and moon; the former marking out years, seasons, and days; and the latter, months and weeks. But, as we observed in the former paper, of the several divisions of time, it has been most difficult to determine with accuracy, the month and the year; since the revolution of neither the sun nor the moon is completed in an exact number of days. To reconcile the revolutions of the sun and moon, with the common account of time, and to make them agree with each other, was the objeet held in view upon reforming the Calendar on the following re markable occasions : i. Julius Cæsar, being convinced by the Greek astronomer, Sosigenes, that the year then employed was too short, and that it could never be properly settled but by referring it to the (apparent) annua! revolution of the sun, and finding that about ninety days had been lost by the old reckoning, made the first Julian year to consist of 444 days, which was in consequence called the "year of confusion." This year was thus made to terminate at the proper season. The following years, with the months, were then adjusted nearly as they are at present; and, as the year was from that time made to consist of 3651 days, a day was inserted every fourth year, between the 6th and 5th of the Calends of March, (which days answer to the 24th and 25th of February); so that, the 6th day of the Calends of March being repeated, there were accounted to be two sixth-days of the Calends of March, and the day thus inserted was named bissextus dies, or the double-sixth day; whence we call Leap-year, in which this addition is made, Bissextile. The ii. But, as the year does not consist of quite 3651 days, it was found, in the sixteenth century after the birth of Christ, that the course of the civil year was ten days in advance of the course of the sun. calendar was, therefore, again corrected by Pope Gregory the Thirteenth, A. D. 1582. This, which is called the new style, was adopted in England, A. D. 1752, as noticed in our former paper. The regulations assumed in this second reformation of the Calendar, are such as, reckoning from the sixteenth century, will make the civil year and the course of the sun to differ after the lapse of 4000 years, only to the amount of one day! THE NOTES given at the head of this article, were the elements employed in the correction of the Calendar; and these we proceed briefly to explain. 1. The GOLDEN NUMBER is the number which any given year holds in the Lunar Cycle, which is a period of nineteen years, at the lapse of which the new moons take place on the same days of the same months respectively as at the commencement of the cycle. Therefore, while the sun performs its annual course nineteen times, those of the moon amount to 235. The importance of this discovery in the regulation of time was held to be so great, that the rule for ascertaining the number of the year in the Lunar Cycle was inscribed in letters of gold on a tablet, set up in the market-place of Athens, in Greece. Hence, the term GOLDEN number. The rule is given in the Calendar which prefaces the Church service. 2. The EPACT is the number of days over and above all the complete courses of the moon, for any number of years, in any part of the Lunar Cycle. Hence, it is the moon's age at the beginning of any year; that is, the number of days which have elapsed since the last new moon in the preceding year. 3. The SOLAR CYCLE is a period of twenty-eight years, which, owing to leap-year, must necessarily pass round before the days of the month can return respectively to the same days of the week as at the commencement of the cycle. 4. The Dominical or SUNDAY LETTER is one of the first seven letters of the alphabet; which letters are used to denote respectively the days of the week, and one of which letters must of course fall to the Sunday throughout the year. But, owing to leapyear, their order is every fourth year disturbed; so that the Solar Cycle must pass round before the letters can fall respectively to the same days of the week. The present being leap-year, there are two Sunday letters; the left-hand letter is used till the end of February, and the other till the end of the year. 5. ROMAN INDICTION was a period of fifteen years appointed by the Emperor Constantine, A.D. 312, for the payment of certain taxes from the subjects of the empire. 6. The NUMBER OF DIRECTION. It having been decided by an assembly of Christian bishops at the Council of Nice, in Asia, A. D. 325, that EASTER DAY is always "the first Sunday after the Full Moon which happens upon, or next after, the 21st of March," it follows that Easter Day cannot take place earlier than the 22nd of March, or later than the 25th of April; so that from one date to the other (both inclusive) are thirty-five days. The number of direction is that day of the thirty-five, on which Easter-Sunday falls. 7. The JULIAN PERIOD Consists of 7980 years; which is produced by the multiplication into each other of the Solar Cycle, the Lunar Cycle, and the Roman Indiction (28 × 19 × 15 =7680). This period is reckoned from 709 years before the creation of the world, when the three cycles are supposed to commence together; which circumstance cannot take place again until the lapse of the entire period, a. d. 3267. THE DUCHY OF SAXE-COBURG-GOTHA. COBURG is a country which has been as yet little visited by travellers, because it does not lie in the course of the great roads; but the fine scenery, the unsophisticated and original old German tone of manners, the economical mode of living, and the celebrity of its reigning family, will probably gradually attract many strangers. The ducal house of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha is of the Lutheran religion. The reigning duke is Ernest, born January 2, 1784, who succeeded to the throne, December 9, 1806. He was married, first to Louisa, princess of Saxe-Gotha, from whom he was separated in 1826, and who died in 1832, and secondly, in 1832, to Maria, daughter of the late Duke Alexander of Würtemberg. He has two sons, Ernest, the heir apparent, born June 21, 1818, and Albert *, born the succeeding year. Of his two sisters, Julia, married to Prince Constantine of Russia, from whom she was divorced in 1820, is dead; the other is Victoria, duchess of Kent, born August 17, 1786: he has also two brothers, Ferdinand, born 1785, and Leopold, king of the Belgians, born 1790. The former has . three sons and one daughter; the eldest son, Ferdinand, is married to Donna Maria, queen of Portugal. The following is a view of the provinces of the duchy and of their population: Market Viltion, 1832. Towns. Towns. lages. Houses. 38,000 4... 4 271 ... 5,700 28.10 92,231 37.50 130,231 ... ... 9 10. 429 23,950 According to the latest census, the entire population amounts to 131,861. The principal towns are, Gotha (13,006 inhabitants), and Coburg (9067). With the exception of the Jews, all the inhabitants are Germans, and all are Lutherans, except 2000 Catholics and 1000 Jews. classical schools, one academical gymnasium, two In this duchy, there are three gymnasiums and seminaries for schoolmasters, one ladies' school (at Coburg), thirty-five town schools, and 300 village schools. The revenue is 1,100,000 florins. public debt amounts to 3,000,000 florins. The contingent to the army of the confederacy is 1366 men. The The government is a constitutional monarchy: the representatives form one chamber only. Gotha, however, has still its old diet (three classes in one chamber). The qualification to vote for a deputy of the nobles is constituted by the possession of a seignorial estate (Rittergut). For the deputies of towns, every citizen is entitled to vote who has never been a bankrupt, and who has not been punished for transgression of the laws. In the villages, the householders form the constituency. The deputies must be of the Christian religion, citizens of the state, thirty years of age, and men of unblemished reputation. Those of the towns The Roman Indiction and the Julian Period are not and villages must have either an estate free from innow of practical use in the Calendar; but the other cumbrances, worth 5000 florins, or an annual income observations will serve to assist those who wish to of 400 florins. Officers of the government appointed understand the Calendar, which is prefixed to the for the purpose, superintend the election of the Church service, in the Prayer-book. BLEST Solitude! when life's gay hours are past, Trust future ages, and contented die, knights and of the citizens: in the villages, the elections are superintended by the ordinary officials. The ministry is composed of one minister of state, and of three privy-councillors. The highest court of justice is the supreme court of appeal; the lower courts are the colleges of justice at Coburg and Gotha; and finally, throughout the The husband-elect of our gracious sovereign Queen Victoria, ED. Sat, Mag: country, justice is administered by bailiffs, magi- | by these circumstances to a sense of the difficulty of strates, and patrimonial judges. The chief officers of the court are, a first marshal of the court, and a grand equerry. The present Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha was formerly Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Saalfeld, but, in 1826, he ceded the latter, and obtained the duchy of Gotha, with exception of the lordship of Kranichfeld. After this change of territory, one of the first acts of his government was the creation of a privy-council, consisting of the officers of government both in Coburg and Gotha. A decree of October 30, 1828, established in each duchy a separate college of justice, which takes cognizance of matrimonial matters, formerly falling under the jurisdiction of the consistorial court. Each duchy has its own system of internal administration, taxation, and excise. On the other hand, for both Coburg and Gotha, there is only one high consistorial court for ecclesiastical affairs and for public instruction, and only one war-office. According to the new regulations, the fees which were formerly claimed by the officials, are now the property of the state. In 1830, a journal was established for the more prompt promulgation of laws and edicts. On the 1st of July, 1829, the army was reorganized, so that the soldiers of both duchies (1366 in number) were made to form one infantry regiment of the line, divided into two battalions. The funds for the preservation and increase of the books, pictures, and coins, at Gotha, have been lately enlarged. The government has particularly distinguished itself in encouraging trade and commerce. Monopolies were abolished in Coburg, so early as 1812; in Gotha, in 1829. Exhibitions of home products and trade schools have been established; and all impediments to commerce have been removed. The French revolution of 1830, produced a temporary sensation in Coburg and Gotha, which led to no important results. But in the distant principality of Lichtenberg, which had been ceded to the duke by the Congress of Vienna, in 1816, its effects were such as not only to disquiet the inhabitants, but also to weaken the moral force of the government. Awakened governing a separate territory, inhabited by a restless population, the Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha has since sold the principality of Lichtenberg to the King of Prussia. In this duchy no preference is given to birth in electing officers of state. Difference of religion does not affect the equal enjoyment of political rights. Every citizen is bound to serve for a certain period in the army, should he be chosen by lot, or to find a substitute. No citizen can remain in arrest for the space of twenty-four hours without being informed of the cause of his apprehension. The territories of the Duke of Gotha lie in Thuringia; they are extremely fertile, well cultivated, and thickly populated. Agriculture is their principal source of prosperity. The northern districts are plains, intersected by chains of hills; the south is mountainous and woody. The principal products are corn, potatoes, carrots, and other vegetables, flax, poppies, aniseed, woad, and an immense quantity of wood, which is the staple article. A few hops are grown; there is not much fruit, and the wine is only made for vinegar. There are plenty of pigs and poultry, but the horses are of an inferior breed. The country contains mines of iron, manganese, coal, and slate. There are numerous worsted-spinners and linen-weavers, particularly in the hilly districts. There are also woollen and cotton manufactories, but they are not very numerous. Other articles of manufacture are iron-ware, wire, copper goods, stockings, tobacco, glue, leather, and soap. soap. There are five paper-mills, three porcelain, and three hardware manufactories. The exports are corn, wood, wool, woad, manganese, pitch, potash, bilberries, coriander-seeds, aniseed, butter, linen, iron goods, sausages, and livers of geese. Coburg, the capital of the principality of Coburg, and formerly the residence of the duke, is situated in a delightful country; it contains more than 800 houses, and about 9000 inhabitants. One of the most prominent public buildings is the palace of Ehrenburg, in which the present duke has made large improvements. It now contains a library, a cabinet of natural history, of medals and prints, and an armoury. In the neighbourhood of the town is the castle of Coburg, which contains a workhouse and a house of correction. In the town itself is a gymnasium, supplied with a library, with specimens of natural history, and medals. There are a senate house, an orphan asylum, a casino, an armoury, and a government house, built in an Italian style of architecture. Amongst the curiosities of the place are Luther's room, which contains some beautiful woodwork, and the alabaster monument of Duke John Frederic, in the church of St. Maurice. The principal places of amusement are the theatre, the casino, the redoute, and the musical club. In the neighbourhood are the beautiful old and new walks, the ruins of the castles of Callenberg and Lauterburg, and the lovely seat of the duke, the Rosenau. Gotha, the capital of the duchy of Gotha, and also a residence of the present duke, contains about 1300 houses, and 13,000 inhabitants. The palace of Friedenstein contains a very good library, a collection of coins, a museum of natural history, a Chinese cabinet, a picture gallery, and remarkable collections made by the late duke, the whole forming a treasure of literature and art, such as few moderate towns can boast of. In 1824, the museum, which was given to the country by the late duke, Frederic, was opened. The ducal libraries contain 150,000 volumes. The walls and fortifications of the town have been changed into ornamental walks. Near the town is the observatory on the Seeberg, 1189 feet above the level of the sea. In the neighbourhood, too, is the palace of Friedreichsthal, containing some valuable monuments of Italian art, and the orangery and park, where the Dukes Ernest and Augustus are buried. The chief places of amusement and public resort here, are the theatre, ball-rooms, and public gardens. In the neighbourhood of Gotha are two ducal palaces, and the Moravian colony of Neudietendorf. The house of Saxe-Coburg is indisputably the most fortunate of all the existing great families of Europe. No common lot has attended them in our time, and they appear destined to fill a remarkable place in modern history. The reigning duke has succeeded to the inheritance of the duchy of Saxe-Gotha, which he enjoys in addition to his original sovereignty of Coburg. His brother, Leopold, was born under an extraordinary star; he first married the heiress to the British throne, and subsequently a daughter of the King of the French; two ladies not less amiable than elevated; and, after declining the throne of Greece, he has been chosen King of Belgium. One sister espoused the Archduke Constantine of Russia, and thus in the ordinary course of events would have become Empress of all the Russias. The history of another sister, the Duchess of Kent, is too well known to require comment; she is the mother of the Queen of England. Another brother has married one of the greatest heiresses of the Austrian empire, the daughter of the Prince of Kohary, and occupies the high post of lieutenant field-marshal, in the service of the emperor. Finally, a nephew of the Duchess of Kent is the reigning King of Portugal. An impartial review of the progress of this distinguished race compels us to add that it does not owe its success to unworthy intrigue; its members bear their great estate with prudence, with good sense, and with moderation; and their domestic qualities form an antidote to the venom which generally pursues a career of success. From Germany; the Spirit of her History, Literature, Social Condition, and National Economy, &c. By Dr. BISSET HAWKINS. THE LAND OF CONTRADICTIONS. There beasts have mallard's bill and legs, For men to judge of their condition by the decrees of God which are hid from us, and not by his word which is near us and in our hearts, is as if a man wandering in the wide sea, in a dark night when the heaven is all clouded about, should yet resolve to steer his course by the stars which which is at hand and would afford him a much better and he cannot see, but only guess at, and neglect the compass, more certain direction.-TILLOTSON. THE brave only know how to forgive; it is the most refined and generous pitch of virtue human nature can arrive at. Cowards have done good and kind actions, cowards have even fought, nay, sometimes even conquered; but a coward never forgave: it is not in his nature; the power of doing it flows only from a strength and greatness of soul, conscious of its own force and security, and above the little temptations of resenting every fruitless attempt to interrupt its happiness.-STERNE. THE knowledge we acquire in this world I am apt to think extends not beyond the limits of this life. The beatific vision of the other life needs not the help of this dim twilight; but be that as it will, I am sure the principal end why we are to get knowledge here, is to make use of it for the benefit of ourselves and others in this world; but if by gaining it we destroy our health, we labour for a thing that will be useless in our hands; and if by harrassing our bodies, (though with a design to render ourselves more useful,) we deprive ourselves of the abilities and opportunities of doing that good we might have done with a meaner talent, which strength to improve it to that pitch which men of stronger God thought sufficient for us, by having denied us the constitutions can attain to, we rob God of so much service, and our neighbour of all that help, which, in a state of health, with moderate knowledge, we might have been able to perform. He that sinks his vessel by overloading it, though it be with gold and silver, and precious stones, will give his owner but an ill account of his voyage.—LOCKE. |