oup of six boys,
standing at a street corner, engaged in plotting some mischief. From
the oldest, a school-boy of twelve, to the little fellow in a pinafore,
they are intent, eager, alert; absorbed in the scheme which they are
discussing. They have sometimes been criticised for being ugly; but as
the artist wittily says, "One does not see such miracles of beauty among
the little boys who run about the streets," and the models were chosen
for the _expressiveness_ of their faces.

The painting met with instantaneous approval, not only from eminent
artists, but from the public, whose judgment on such subjects is even
more conclusive. All the leading periodicals obtained permission to
engrave it, and it became the talk of the hour. The signature, "M.
Bashkirtseff," left the sex of the artist an open question, and there
were those who could not believe that it was the work of a woman, and
a young one at that.

[Illustration: THE MEETING.--MARIE BASHKIRTSEFF.]

Mademoiselle Bashkirtseff found great amusement in visiting the
exhibition, watching the people look at her picture, and laughing in
her sleeve to imagine their amazement should they know that the
elegantly dressed young lady sitting near it was the artist.

The sequel is full of pathos. In spite of all the praises heaped upon
it, The Meeting did not receive a medal. To the ambitious young girl the
disappointment was most humiliating, and with characteristic sincerity
she did not try to conceal her indignation and chagrin. Justice came at
last, but all too late. When the bright young hopes were stilled in the
quiet of death, the picture was honored with a place in the Luxembourg,
where it hangs to-day, an admirable representation of that most
interesting genus, the Paris _gamin_.

The American street boy is a distinct type: his ambition is to rise in
the world. Wealth, fame, and power may be his, if he will but labor to
attain them, and to this end he throws himself ardently into the
building of a career. For a certain portion of the day he is a man of
affairs. Dashing through the net-work of wheels, in the thickest traffic
of crowded thoroughfares, jumping on and off moving cars and carriages,
pushing his way with untiring zeal, he shows a reckless daring and a
dauntless energy which are unmatched among any other people. His duties
done, he is a gentleman of leisure. He may amuse himself now as he
pleases, and his recreations show the same versatility displayed i