ther members of the family were
at work, one member read aloud to the rest; and George Sand was
a favorite author with the Bonheur group of artists. It was while
reading _La Mare au Diable_ that Rosa conceived the idea of the work
which by some critics is pronounced her masterpiece, _Plowing in
Nivernais_. The artist's deep sympathy was aroused by her love of
Nature, which no contemporary novelist expressed or appreciated as
did George Sand. In all her works, and throughout the long life of the
artist, there is absolutely nothing unhealthy or immoral to be found.
The novelist had theories which were inspired by her passion, and
these became unhealthy at times; she belongs first of all to France,
while Rosa Bonheur belongs first of all to the world, her message
reaching the young and old of every clime and every people. The
novelist is to be associated with the artist by virtue of her
exquisite, simple, and wholesome peasant stories.

The entire Bonheur family were artists, and all were moral and
genuinely sympathetic. As a young girl, Rosa manifested an intense
love for Nature, sunshine, and the woods; always independent in
manners, she used to caricature her teachers; and while walking
out into the country, she would draw, with charcoal or in sand, any
objects that met her eye. Her father was not long in detecting her
talent. She was wedded to her art from the very beginning, showing no
taste for or interest in any other subject. As soon as her father gave
permission to follow art as a profession, she devoted all her energy
to advancing herself in what she felt to be her life's work. For four
years the young girl could be seen every day at the Louvre, copying
the great masters and receiving principally from them her ideas of
coloring and harmony, while from her father she learned her technique.
After she had mastered these two principles, she decided to specialize
in pastoral nature.

From that time her whole life was given up to the study of Nature and
animals. Not able to study those near by, she procured a fine Beauvais
sheep, which served as her model for two years. From the very first
her work showed accuracy, purity, and an intuitive perception of
Nature, and these qualities soon placed her among the foremost artists
of the time. Her struggle for reputation and glory was not a long and
arduous one, for after 1845 her fame was established--she was then but
twenty-three years old; and after 1849, having exhibited