y of insect, bird, reptile, and
mammal life which the forest contains. But it is with the beauty of
this animal life, rather than with its extent and variety, that we are
concerned. And if the Artist is to see its full beauty, he must see it
with the eyes of the naturalist and sportsman--men whose eyes are
trained to observe in minutest detail the form and colour and
character of each animal, bird, or insect, and who know something
of the life each has to lead, and the conditions in which it is placed.
More sportsmen than naturalists, and more naturalists than artists,
observe these and other animals in their natural surroundings. But,
nowadays, at least photographers and cinematographers are going
into the wilds to portray them. And perhaps naturalist-artists will
arise who, every bit as keen as sportsmen now are to get to close
quarters with game animals, will want to get into positions from
which they will be able carefully to observe animals of all kinds and
take note of every characteristic. These artists will have to be fully
as alert as the sportsmen, and be able on the instant, and from a
fleeting glimpse, to note the lines and shades and character of the
animal. But, if they do this, they will, in all probability, bring back
more lasting and deeper impressions of the animals than the
sportsman with all his keen observation ever receives--and they will
enjoy a greater pleasure. An artist, who from observing an animal in
its own haunts, and from the sketches and notes he made there,
could paint a picture of it in its own surroundings, would assuredly
derive more pleasure from his enterprise than the sportsman who
simply brought back the animal's head. In addition he would have
enabled others to share his enjoyment with him. There is a great
field here for the painter; and many would welcome a change from
the same old cows and sheep tamely grazing in a meadow, which is
all that artists usually present to us of animal life.

Among the most conspicuous animals met with are the elephant, the
bison, the buffalo, and the rhinoceros. And it would be hard to
discover beauty in any of these. As we see the rhinoceros, for
example, in the Zoological Gardens nothing could be more ugly. Yet
we should not despair of finding beauty even in a rhinoceros if we
could study him in his natural surroundings and understand all the
circumstances of his life. If we observed him and his habits and
habitat with the knowledge of the natur