Traced from the back of the Felton Picture, by Ab Wivell. Gu C Sz Copied from Richardson's. Guil Shak 15977 7597 a gentleman's name, which it seems he was bound to do, and what is no uncommon case with persons of his description, for few gentlemen like to have their names publicly exposed in catalogues of the property they send to be sold. Mr. Richardson, in his proposals for publishing two plates from the above picture, promises to give a fac-simile of the hand-writing, at the back of the portrait, and which is shown in the first plate by Trotter. That this promise is not fulfilled, I will prove by giving fac-similies of both the writings, (see the plate.) That Mr. Richardson is, by some means, under a mistake, is evident as to a letter (N), being one of the initials of the painter's name, and it might originate from the circumstance, that it requires a good sight to distinguish what it really is, as it has been rubbed at frequent inspections. The reader will observe in the plate I have given, which is traced from the original writing, that the tail of the (R) has been mistaken for the centre line of the letter (N). There are also two other mistakes, as to the spelling of the poet's names; first, his christian name is spelt Gul. and not Guil. and, therefore, is not translated into "French" (as Mr. Boaden says it is at page 89), but in Latin, consequently, Mr. Steevens is also in the wrong. At the end of the surname there is not a letter (e), as it finishes with (r), part of which is imperfect, it having been taken away with a piece of the wood. |