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Longworth of Cincinnati, he started for Florence.
In one year his statue of Eve was finished, which
Thorwaldsen said was a work any sculptor might
be proud to claim as his masterpiece. Not long
after, his Greek Slave made him famous. The
first copy is in the gallery of the Duke of Cleve-
land; the second is in the Corcoran Art Gallery
at Washington ; the third belongs to Earl Dudley,
and a fourth was purchased by A, T. Stewart of
New York for eleven hundred dollars. His
bronze statue of Webster in the State House
grounds, is familiar to all Boston boys. I went to
his beautiful home in Florence, as to a shrine, but
alas, the great artist had gone out from its doors
forever.
Without the struggle of povervy, to be sure, but

 

WILLIAM M. HUNT.

amid the struggle of absorbing, tireless, enthusias-
tic work, another artist came to occupy the fore-
most position in American art, William M. Hunt.
Boston knew he was a great artist while he lived;
she will be constantly confirmed in this belief as
the years go on, and the great world will finally
acknowledge a master. We are so busy a people,
making great fortunes and building elegant homes,
we are so eager to discover a new oil well or
a new coal or silver mine, that we have little time
a discover a genius, even though he live next
oor.

Fortunately, the boy, Hunt, had a mother of

great — yes, remarkable talent — perhaps it would
be difficult to find a great man whose mother was

LITTLE BIOGRAPHIES.—HOW SUCCESS IS WON.

not a superior woman. Mrs. Hunt, it is believed,
would have been a famous painter also, had not-
her father, like others. in those days, thought it
unwomanly for a girl to be an artist, and forbade
her, absolutely forbade her, to touch the brush.
She married early, and after four sons and a
daughter were born, her husband died, leaving to
her the education of the children. An Italian ar-
tist coming to the town, she took him into her
home, and mother and children began to study
art together and in earnest.

William, at twelve, carved small heads in mar-
ble, and later, in shell cameos. Fond of music, at
fifteen he played on the piano and violin. His
brown eyes were full of fun, and his sensitive, joy-
ous nature, with his deep sympathy, won hosts of
friends. At sixteen he entered Harvard College,
but failing in health, yet not discouraged, at nine-
teen left the University and went to Italy. Here
he made the determination to become a sculpior,

‘and for two years, part of the time in Dusseldorf,

he studied drawing and the anatomy of the human
body. Later, in Paris, he became the pupil of
Thomas Couture. There he worked long and pa-
tiently with the brush. He doubtless thought
with Turner: “I know of no genius but the gen-
ius of hard work.”

Years after, he said to his class in Boston:
“You don’t know what persistent effort is! Think
of the violin student in the Paris Conservatoire,
who was more than a year trying to bend his
thumb as he had not been taught to do in the
provinces !

“When I was a little boy I wanted to learn the
violin, but a certain man discouraged me. ‘Don’t
learn the violin! It’s so hard!’ I could kick
that man now.” So annoyed was he that anybody
should shrink from hard work —it seemed to him
the most fatal of all weaknesses.

At another time, he said: “Be earnest, and
don’t worry, and you will learn twice as fast. If
you could see me dig and groan, rub it out and
start again, hate myself, and feel dreadfully! The
people who do things easily, their things you look
at easily, and give away easily }

“What if Michael Angelo had done his work in
the Sistine Chapel easily! An artist one day
called upon Grisi, found her upon a sofa, weary
and forlorn, He expressed his surprise at her
appearance, declaring that she was the one mortal
whom he had envied, such was her strength, buoy-
ancy and joyousness. He had not thought she
could find life a burden. ‘Ah,’ said she, ‘I save
myself all day for that one bound upon the stage.
Not for worlds would I leave this sofa, which I
must keep all day that I may be ready for my
work at night.’

“Inspiration is nothing without work. What
we do best is done against difficulties. Work
while your brain is full of the picture before you.