ide beautiful sculpture, it seems to me that the greatest
pains should be taken to set it off beautifully. You should have
beautiful sculpture in the middle of the room, with dark walls round it
to throw out its profile, and you should have all the arrangements made
there so as to harmonize with it, and to set forth every line of it. So
the painting gallery, I think, might be made a glorious thing, if the
pictures were level, and the architecture above produced unity of
impression from the beauty and glow of color and the purity of form.

_Mr. Richmond._ And you would not exclude a Crevelli because it was
quaint, or an early master of any school--you would have the infancy,
the youth, and the age, of each school, would you not?--Certainly.

_Dean of St. Paul's._ Of the German as well as the Italian?--Yes.

_Mr. Richmond._ Spanish, and all the schools?--Certainly.

136. _Mr. Cockerell._ You are quite aware of the great liberality of the
Government, as we learn from the papers, in a recent instance, namely,
the purchase of a great Paul Veronese?--I am rejoiced to hear it. If it
is confirmed, nothing will have given me such pleasure for a long time.
I think it is the most precious Paul Veronese in the world, as far as
the completion of the picture goes, and quite a priceless picture.

Can you conceive a Government, or a people, who would countenance so
expensive a purchase, condescending to take up with the occupation of
the upper story of some public building, or with an expedient which
should not be entirely worthy of such a noble Gallery of Pictures?--I do
not think that they ought to do so; but I do not know how far they will
be consistent. I certainly think they ought not to put up with any such
expedient. I am not prepared to say what limits there are to consistency
or inconsistency.

_Mr. Richmond._ I understand you to have given in evidence that you
think a National Collection should be illustrative of the whole art in
all its branches?--Certainly.

Not a cabinet of paintings, not a collection of sculptured works, but
illustrative of the whole art?--Yes.

137. Have you any further remark to offer to the Commissioners?--I wish
to say one word respecting the question of the restoration of statuary.
It seems to me a very simple question. Much harm is being at present
done in Europe by restoration, more harm than was ever done, as far as
I know, by revolutions or by wars. The French are now doing great harm
to