File:The Maclise portrait-gallery of "illustrious literary characters", with memoirs biographical, critical, bibliographical and anecdotal, illustrative of the literature of the former half of the present (14577770660).jpg

Identifier: macliseportraitg00macl (find matches)
Title: The Maclise portrait-gallery of "illustrious literary characters", with memoirs biographical, critical, bibliographical & anecdotal, illustrative of the literature of the former half of the present century
Year: 1883 (1880s)
Authors: Maclise, Daniel, 1806-1870 Bates, William, d. 1884
Subjects: Authors Authors, English Journalists
Publisher: London : Chatto and Windus
Contributing Library: The Centre for 19th Century French Studies - University of Toronto
Digitizing Sponsor: University of Toronto

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and most perfunctory of notices. If my readers have ever wondered for a moment, how, when, and wherethe sittings were given for the series of portraits which I have had thehonour of exhibiting to them, the natural emotion may perchance be satis-fied by a sentence in which,—so far, at least, as regards the drawing beforeus,—^\•e are let into the secret. By an ingenious stratagem, says Frascr, our artist penetrated into the baronets sanctuary in Belgrave Square,attired like a ticket-porter. He produced a note, as from an Irishmember, requesting a loan of three-and-sixpence, to pay a score at theReform Club. While Sir William Molesworth was meditating whether heshould produce the money,—while he wrote a line signifying that therequest was granted, and kindly enclosed the mopuses in an envelope,—young Croquis watched, marked, surveyed him,—and made the admirableportrait opposite, unobserved, on his thumb-nail. Sir William lies on a luxurious sofa ; his limbs are enveloped in a
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S/J^ IVILLIAM MOLESWORTII. 417 damask robe ; a Grecian cap, marvellously embroidered, ornaments hissconce ; his legs arc crossed in an attitude of profound meditation. It isthus our great statesman appears in his closet, and meditates upon cos-mogony, or the state of human affairs. Not political alone engage hismind : he is a profound metaphysician ; as a linguist, stupendous ; as amathematician, he has attained a depth which is more easily imaginedthan described. Sir Isaac Newton once said, in our hearing, when SirWilliam, as a lad, came up to Trinity, Dash my wig, Mr. Yorke ! thatyoung man beats me all to shivers. We speak within compass when wesay, that Sir William JMolesworth reads you off a page of Chinese withgreat ease, and the true Pekin accent; that Professor Whewell is a ninnycompared to him in mathematics ; and we have even heard that he notonly admires, but understands, Jeremy Bentham. Our artist remarkednothing further in the chamber, except that, on his entrance. Sir Wil

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