But he felt as Ali Baba must have felt in the treasure-cavern—dazzled, longing to take all he could, but hurried and ill at ease. It is easy for an arm-chair philosopher to advise patience and coolness; to say, “Select a little, and see it thoroughly”; but to be a visitor at the greatest of World’s Fairs is quite another matter, and in the Art Galleries you can never tell what you are losing.
They issued in Chicago several useful little handbooks to the Fair. “The Time-Saver,” “The Nutshell Guide,” “Gems of the Fair,” “What to See and How to Find It,” were some of them, and by reading these one could be fairly sure of not overlooking many “best” things in the trade exhibits. But in the Art Galleries such books can be of little use. The pictures Philip looked at pleased him for various reasons. Some were by consummate colorists; some told a pleasing tale; some preached a little sermon; some were amusing, and others played upon deeper chords. Now, as to these no two boys or men would feel just alike; and you can no more let another pick out your pictures than you can let a stranger order your meals.
As Philip was standing in one of the galleries an old man said slyly:
“No awards here.”
“Is that so?” asked Philip in surprise.
“Yes,” said the old man; “the French found the Germans were beating them, and so they quit!” And the old man disappeared in the crowd, chuckling to himself, and seeming to take more interest in this bit of gossip than in the pictures.
Philip went on through two rooms containing pastels and water-colors; he meant to skip them entirely. It was not that he undervalued these mediums, but he felt he had to draw the line somewhere (as in the old story of the man who didn’t invite his parents to his wedding); and the oil-paintings were more numerous.
But he was compelled to look at three pictures by Boutet-de-Monvel because they were just what he liked, at one by Maurice Eliot, and at some hunting-dogs resting by a river, painted by Oliver de Penne. He made up for this pause by skipping two large collections of miniatures, etchings, and medals, and began to go around the room known as “Gallery 45.”
Here he found two pictures that have caused much controversy—one showing the Crucifixion as upon Montmartre, Paris, and the other representing Christ as sitting at table in a modern drawing-room.
