_The Pretty Laundress_ (_La Belle Blanchisseuse_).--De Goncourt, in a criticism of Greuze's pictures, has written that the work that goes on in his paintings is but a simulation of work--that his washerwomen do not wash. It may be that this is the picture which inspired the criticism. A charming girl, elegantly dressed, sits in an impossible position, as far as any effective washing is concerned, before a ridiculously little bowl. The whole picture is most attractive, but it is not washing day; and, perhaps, after all, washing day is not precisely the best subject that an artist could have selected for sublimation. The picture is now in the collection of Count Axel Wachtmeister, at Wanas, in Germany. {57} THE CHIEF WORKS OF GREUZE The largest collection of Greuze's pictures is not in his own country, but is here in England, at Hertford House. The paintings forming that collection were included in the Wallace bequest, and thus they have become the property of the nation. Most other European countries have secured examples of Greuze's work, and several of his paintings may also be seen in America. GREAT BRITAIN. _WALLACE COLLECTION,_ In this collection alone there are twenty-one examples of the work of Greuze. Some of these are of the best, and a few illustrate the artist's imperfections. For instance, before _Fidelity_ and _Ariadne_ one has the same unpleasant sensation as when a girl spoils the effect of her beauty by stagey poses and by sentimental attitudinizing. _A Bacchante_ is gross and voluptuous. The most important pictures in the collection are: A Girl with Doves. (See p. 40.) The Listening Girl. (See p. 54.) Portrait of Mdlle. Sophie Arnould. The Votive Offering To Cupid. The Broken Mirror. Innocence. (See p. 56.) Espièglerie, Girl With A Gauze Scarf. {58} _NATIONAL GALLERY._ Girl's Head Draped with a Scarf (See p. 41.) The Head of a Girl. Girl with an Apple. Girl with a Lamb. _BUCKINGHAM PALACE._ A Mother and Three Children. The mother indicates, by a look, that she does not wish the oldest boy to disturb the youngest by playing his flute. Girl in Cap seated on a Chair. A Girl's Head. There are also pictures by Greuze in many of the galleries of private collectors. For instance, examples may be seen in the collections of the Duke of Wellington, the Earl of Rosebery, the Earl of Dudley, the Earl of Northbrook, Lord Yarborough, the Marquis of Lansdowne, Sir Frederic Cook, Bart., Mr. Alfred de Rothschild, Mr. Reginald Vaile, Mr. H. L. Bischoffsheim, Mr. Pierpont Morgan, Mr. Lesser Lesser, Mr. George Donaldson, Mr. Martin Colnaghi, Mr. Charles Morrison, Mr. Beit, and others. _NATIONAL GALLERY OF SCOTLAND._ Girl with Dead Canary. Girl with Broken Jar. This is a sketch in oils of the idea which Greuze afterwards painted as _The Broken Pitcher_, the famous picture that now hangs in the Louvre. Boy with Lesson-Book. Interior of a Cottage. Girl with Folded Hands.