n asked to engrave the copper plates that were used
in printing pictures. Sir Edwin's father soon decided that he would
rather engrave pictures than sell jewels, and he became a very
skillful engraver.

At that time few people realized what an art it was to be able to cut
a picture in copper so that a great many copies of it could be made
from one plate. They did not even consider it an art as we do, and so
engravers were not allowed to exhibit at the Royal Academy and were
given no honors at all. Edwin's father thought this was not right, and
gave several lectures in defense of the art. He said that engraving is
a kind of "sculpture performed by incision." His talks were of no
avail at the time, but within a year after his death the engravers
received the recognition due them.

His eldest son, Thomas, also became famous as an engraver, and to him
we are indebted for so many fine prints of Sir Edwin Landseer's
paintings. Thomas also made an engraving of the "Horse Fair" for Rosa
Bonheur. Few can afford to own the paintings, but the prints come
within the means of all of us.

Edwin's father taught him to draw, and even when Edwin was only five
years old he could draw remarkably well. Edwin had three sisters and
two brothers. They lived in the country, and often the father went
with his children for a walk through the fields. There were two very
large fields separated by a fence over which was built an
old-fashioned stile with several steps. The fence was built high so
the sheep and cows in the fields could not jump over. One day Edwin
stopped at the stile to look at the cows and asked his father to show
him how to draw them. His father then gave Edwin his first lesson in
drawing a cow. After this Edwin came nearly every day to these fields
and his father called them "Edwin's studio."

When he was only thirteen years old, two of his pictures were exhibited
at the Royal Academy. One was a portrait of a mule, and the other was of
a dog and puppies. Edwin painted from real life always, not caring to
make copies from the work of others. All the sketches he made when he
was a little boy were kept carefully by his father, and now if you go to
England you may see them in the South Kensington Museum in London.

Landseer was only sixteen years old when he exhibited his wonderful
picture "Fighting Dogs Getting Wind." A very rich man whose praise
meant a great deal bought the picture, and the young artist's success
was assured