bers with little light, and others conduct us to the open air. The walls of most of the chambers and halls are profusely ornamented with sculptured figures and groups, in strong alto relievo, mostly of more than life size, some colossal, those of the main hall being wellnigh covered with sculptures of great richness; though the execution is rough and ungainly in a degree, and many of the groups and figures absolutely repulsive, the concrete effect is grandly impressive. The groups and figures represent scenes in the life of the idolgods; the largest, at the end of the great hall, in the adytum, is a colossal representation of the Hindoo Triad, Brahma, the creator, Vishnu, the pre

IDOLS IN THE CAVE-TEMPLE OF ELEPHANTA.

tian beholder, this extensive temple of a false religion, with its myriads of sculptured or carved representations of false gods, is vocal with many and varied suggestions, one of which only will we venture to transcribe: Those who hewed out this great temple, and consecrated it to the purposes of worship, were worshippers of false gods, and of the works of their own hands; but they evinced their sincerity and their zeal in thus devoting time and labor and means to those gods. How many are there among us who, according to the better light we have, are equally sincere and zealous, and prepared to show it by a corres ponding devotion of self and all to the God of the Scriptures?

sightly daubs which no tyro would mistake for works of art-and there were specimens of every grade between the highest and the lowest. A careless or impulsive critic would be very apt to conclude, and not without reason, that the maker of such a collection was simply a monomaniac without judgment or discrimination; but Mr. Thompson was unquestionably an intelligent connoisseur, as the perfect and critically exact taste evinced in his separation of the Paintings into groups of varying excellence amply attests; not one in the least unworthy was placed with the masterpieces, nor one in the least worthy with the worthless-and the same nice discrimination was evident in each intermediate grade; of course, in each grade, there were subgrades, but the Paintings in each division, as arranged by him, were readily recognized as of about equal merit. Why one who cer

tainly was aware of their character purchased so many inferior and not a few worthless pictures, is a puzzle that I shall not attempt to solve.

But by far the most remarkable fact in connection with this remarkable collection, was the strange manner in which Mr. Thompson stored them away where they could serve no conceivable purpose, except it were to gratify a miser's passion for hoarding; a newspaper correspondent shortly after Mr. Thompson's death, said: "In our opinion, it had been originally his intention to organize a large and perpetual Art Gallery for the benefit of our sister city." This theory is barely plausible, not probable, as Mr. Thompson, so far as I know, never gave a hint during life of such a thought, nor did he leave a pen-word to indicate such a purpose; the very low class of some of the Paintings seems to make the supposition untenable; besides, though a kindly, agreeable gentleman, Mr.

Thompson was scarcely the man to conceive and plan so noble and magnificent an enterprise. I cannot, however, advance a counter-theory, except it be that he was under the influence of a miser-like mania for collecting and hoarding what gratified his taste, just as the miser gathers and hoards the gold which is the chief good in life in his estimation.

Mr. Thompson occupied three floors of the building on Fulton Street, shown in the engraving herewith; in the second floor, where the light was the best, were stored the grand masterpieces, and the better Paintings not of that class; on the third floor were those of less merit, while on the first were the inferior and worthless; the manner of storing is shown in the en graving on page 139.

I shall not essay a list of Mr. Thompson's pictures, or even of the works of the masters embraced therein, beyond the mention of a few as in

dicative of the collector's taste.

"The Triumph of Galatea," by Bartolomeo Schidone, is unsurpassed by anything I have ever seen, and cannot but be regarded as one of the noblest triumphs of Italian Painting in its best period; the artist has been called "one of the best imitators of Corregio," but this piece is eminently and superbly original, and in design and finish, drawing and color, will bear the most critical analysis. "The Discovery of Calistro," requires no comment beyond the mention of Peter Paul Rubens as the artist; there was another by him, but the name has passed from my mind. Then there were several Reynoldses, two Ettys, a number of Bierstadts, an Earl, two Angelia Kauffmanns, a Lawrence, a Sully copy from Titian, a Delaroche, a Xavery, two Jordaenses, a Le Brun, a grand Ludovici Caracci, a head attributed to and worthy of Grenze, a curious history-portrait

by Jacques Stella of Louis XIV. and Richelieu, and many more unquestionably entitled to rank with these, which I have not space to note. There were a large number of capital Paintings by Americans of high repute, though the collector seems to have been entirely independent of local considerations in his selections, as some of the best and worst were foreign, and some of the best and worst American.

After Mr. Thompson's decease, his widow had the vast collection carefully catalogued and sold-and thus the work, which had cost him much thought, labor and money, was lost in the scattering of its fruits.

pelled him to erect an extensive building expressly for the purpose. The fact that he gave no intimation during life, and left none at death, of such a purpose, proves nothing to the contrary; nor does the fact that he bought so many pictures unworthy of a place in a public gallery; indeed, the last-mentioned fact rather favors the theory, as, with such a grand purpose in view, he would be much more likely to purchase, without previous inspection, at auction sales and elsewhere, all that might be offered at low prices, intending at his leisure to examine his pictures more critically and retain only those adapted to his purpose. Besides, the additional fact, which so perplexes our correspondent, that he stored away his pictures in so unheard of a manner, becomes much less perplexing if we suppose that he was simply accumulating for a noble ulterior use; then, too, this storing away harmonizes with his prolonged silence as to his design. This theory, moreover, relieves Mr. Thompson of the suspicion that he was a miser or a monomaniac in art.

Vinnie was born some twenty-six years ago, in a log cabin, in the Territory of Wisconsin; her father being Treasurer of that Territory. Shortly after the admission of Wisconsin as a State, her father removed with his family to Washington, but did not remain long in that city, removing thence to Missouri, where Vinnie received most of her school education. After a time, Mr. Ream changed his abode once more into Arkansas. Here they remained until the Civil War drove them hence, and they went once more to the

Vinnie was likewise given a clerkship by the Postmaster General. During all these years, the young artist knew not herself the genius for sculpture that slumbered within her. This was aroused into exercise at length, as it were by accident; in the studio of the elder Mills, on a brief visit, she saw him in the act of modeling, and, it is said, exclaimed, "Why, I can do that!" The old artist gave her some clay, doubtless without a thought of the possible something she might work out of it. He was surprised, we are told, when, a few days later, she returned to his studio with her model of "The Dying Standard-Bearer." Though not a gem of art, this was a wonderful

production for so young a girl, and one who had received no instruction whatever, beyond a few minutes' study of Mr. Mills's manipulations.

From this time, Miss Ream applied all her leisure moments to modeling, and soon resigned her position in the Postal Department, resolved to devote herself henceforward to the art which had obtained such complete mastery of her that, though some wealthy relatives offered strong inducements, her resolution was inflexible.

She has produced many excellent portrait-busts of noted men, besides a number of good ideal groups; but her "America, or the Four Sisters" (the North, East, South and West), is said to be

her best work. Her "Abraham Lincoln," is well conceived, and its execution is creditable. It has been pronounced by a more competent judge than we claim to be, "worthy of a master hand."

Miss Vinnie is a pretty little woman, with bright black eyes, and a fine head well adorned with raven ringlets, while her conversational powers are rare, being marked by sprightly wit and intelligence, without affectation or any appa rent effort to show her superior mental gifts and culture. Still young, and a devotee to the Plastic Art, we shall not be surprised to see her attain a high rank among the eminent sculptors of our country.