ENVY AND EMULATION. © 437

tion of the best judges, he threw out secret insinus-
tions that Guidotto had been assisted in it by one or
other of his masters; and he affected to represent it as
a sort of lucky hit, which the reputed author would
probably never equal.

Not so Lorenzo. Though a very young proficient
in the art, he comprehended in its full extent the
excellence of Guidotto’s performance, and became one —
of the sincerest of his admirers. Fired with the
praises he saw him receive on all sides, he ardently
longed one day to deserve the like. He’ placed him
before his eyes as a fair model, which it was his highest
ambition to arrive at equalling—for as to exccllime
him, he could not as yet conceive the possibility of it.
He never spoke of him but with rapture, and could
not bear to hear the detractions of Brunello.

But Lorenzo did not content himself with words.
He entered with his whole soul into the career of
improvement—was first and last of all the scholars in
the designing-room—and devoted to practice at home
those hours which the other youths passed in amuse:
ment. It was long before he could please himself
with any of his attempts, and he was continually re-
peating over them, “ Alas! how far distant is this
from Guidotto’s!’? At length, however, he had the
satisfaction of becoming sensible of progress; and,
having received considerable applause on account of one
of his performances, he ventured to say to himself,
« And why may not I too become a Guidotto ?”

Meanwhile, Guidotto continued to bear away the
palm from all competitors. Brunello struggled a
while to contest with him, but at length gave up the
point, and consoled himself under his inferiority, by
ill-natured sarcasm and petulant criticism. Lorenzo
worked away in silence, and it was long before his
modesty would suffer him to place any piece of bis in
view at the same time with one of Guidotto’s.

There was a certain day in the year in which it wag