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Article ANECDOTES OF J—— SWARTS. Page 1 of 1
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Anecdotes Of J—— Swarts.
ANECDOTES OF J—— SWARTS .
J SWARTS , a famous German painter , being to work a roof-piece o in a public town-hall , and to paint by the day , grew exceedingly negligent , so that the magistrates and overseers of the work were every now and then fain to hunt him out . of the taverns . Seeing he could not drink in quiet , he , the next morning , stuffs a pair of stockings and shoes suitable to those he wore , hangs them down betwixt his staging
where he sat to work , removes them a little once or twice a day , and takes them dowi } noon and night ; and , by means of this deception , drank , without the least disturbance , a whole fortnight together ( the inn-keeper being privy to die plot , and his very trusty-friend . The officers came in twice a day to look at him , and , seeing his legs hang down , suspected nothing , but greatly extolled their convert J . Swarts ,
as the most laborious and conscientious painter in the world . The same J . Swarts had admirabl y well performed the history of our Saviour ' s passion , large and in oil colours . Cardinal B was so p leased with it that he resolved to bring the Pope to see it . —Swarts knew the day , and , determining to put a trick upon the Cardinal and the Pope , painted overthe oil , in fine water colours , the twelve disciples at supperbut together by the earslike the Lapithea and the Centaurs ;
, , the pots and dishes flying about their ears like hail ; Christ interposing to make peace among them . At the time appointed came the Pope and Cardinal to see this curious piece—Swarts carried them to the room where it hung— -they stood amazed and thought the painter mad . At last says the Cardinal , " Thou idiot , call you this a passion ?" " Yesfaith" said he" and a good one too 1 believe
, , , very ; you " never saw the like in ' your life . " " I think so too , " says the Cardinal , " but , sirrah , shew ^ me the . piece I saw when last here . "— " This is it , " says Swarts , " foif . 'J'have no other finished in the house . " The Cardinal called him . aiiyar—the painter swore he had no other—the Pope
laughed to seejthe broil . " There , says Swarts , " your holiness has " seen my .-lord cardinal's passion , I will now shew you our Saviour ' s ; only be p leased to retire a few minutes out of this room , but , before you go , examine the length and breadth of this picture ; and , if you p lease , you may leave a servant with me . " They did so , and were no sooner retired than Swarts , having prepared . a spunge and warm water , immediatelexpunges the whole history in water colours ; then
introy ducing the Pope and Cardinal presents them with a most lively and doleful p icture of our Saviour ' s passion . —They run to the picture , examine private marks , and find them there , and are farther assured- by their attendant that it is the same . They stand astonished , judge Swarts a necromancer , and such a change impossible without the aid of the devil . At last the painter explains the riddle , and then , they know not
which to admire most , his wit or his work .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Anecdotes Of J—— Swarts.
ANECDOTES OF J—— SWARTS .
J SWARTS , a famous German painter , being to work a roof-piece o in a public town-hall , and to paint by the day , grew exceedingly negligent , so that the magistrates and overseers of the work were every now and then fain to hunt him out . of the taverns . Seeing he could not drink in quiet , he , the next morning , stuffs a pair of stockings and shoes suitable to those he wore , hangs them down betwixt his staging
where he sat to work , removes them a little once or twice a day , and takes them dowi } noon and night ; and , by means of this deception , drank , without the least disturbance , a whole fortnight together ( the inn-keeper being privy to die plot , and his very trusty-friend . The officers came in twice a day to look at him , and , seeing his legs hang down , suspected nothing , but greatly extolled their convert J . Swarts ,
as the most laborious and conscientious painter in the world . The same J . Swarts had admirabl y well performed the history of our Saviour ' s passion , large and in oil colours . Cardinal B was so p leased with it that he resolved to bring the Pope to see it . —Swarts knew the day , and , determining to put a trick upon the Cardinal and the Pope , painted overthe oil , in fine water colours , the twelve disciples at supperbut together by the earslike the Lapithea and the Centaurs ;
, , the pots and dishes flying about their ears like hail ; Christ interposing to make peace among them . At the time appointed came the Pope and Cardinal to see this curious piece—Swarts carried them to the room where it hung— -they stood amazed and thought the painter mad . At last says the Cardinal , " Thou idiot , call you this a passion ?" " Yesfaith" said he" and a good one too 1 believe
, , , very ; you " never saw the like in ' your life . " " I think so too , " says the Cardinal , " but , sirrah , shew ^ me the . piece I saw when last here . "— " This is it , " says Swarts , " foif . 'J'have no other finished in the house . " The Cardinal called him . aiiyar—the painter swore he had no other—the Pope
laughed to seejthe broil . " There , says Swarts , " your holiness has " seen my .-lord cardinal's passion , I will now shew you our Saviour ' s ; only be p leased to retire a few minutes out of this room , but , before you go , examine the length and breadth of this picture ; and , if you p lease , you may leave a servant with me . " They did so , and were no sooner retired than Swarts , having prepared . a spunge and warm water , immediatelexpunges the whole history in water colours ; then
introy ducing the Pope and Cardinal presents them with a most lively and doleful p icture of our Saviour ' s passion . —They run to the picture , examine private marks , and find them there , and are farther assured- by their attendant that it is the same . They stand astonished , judge Swarts a necromancer , and such a change impossible without the aid of the devil . At last the painter explains the riddle , and then , they know not
which to admire most , his wit or his work .