Mrs. Allingham's case has been the entire contrary to this; she has, I will not say toiled, for the garnering must be a pleasure, but stored, many a time and oft, for future use, a mass of valuable material, so that she is never at a loss for the right adjunct to fit the right place. Her so doing was, in the first instance, due entirely to her husband. He said, truly, that the introduction of animals and birds, in fact, any form of life, gave scale and interest to a picture, and he urged her to begin making studies from the first. There is not the slightest doubt that she owed very much to him that habit of thinking out fitting figures, as she has always tried, and with exceptional success, as accessories to every landscape. Her sketch-books, consequently, are full not only of men, women, and children, and their immediate belongings, but of most of the animal life which follows in their train. I say "most," because for some reason, which I have not elicited from her, she has preferences. Horses, cattle, and sheep she will have but little of, only occasionally introducing them in distant hay or harvest fields. The only instances of anything akin to either in this book are the animals in "The Goat Carriage," and "The Donkey Ride." Nor will she have much to say to dogs, but for cats she has a great fondness, and they animate a large number of her scenes. Fowls, pigeons, and the like she paints to the life, and she apparently is thoroughly acquainted with their habits; but other winged creatures, save an occasional robin, she avoids. Rabbits, wild and tame, she often introduces. Her pictures being always typical of repose, she avoids much motion in her figures. Her children even, seldom indulge in violent action, unlike those of Birket Foster, who run races down hill, use the skipping-rope, fly kites, and urge the horses in the lane out of their accustomed foots-pace. * * * * * As typical examples of the drawings made in the early days at Witley, and whilst the figure was the main object, we have selected the following:-- [Illustration: 23. THE CHILDREN'S TEA _From the Water-colour in the possession of Mr. W. Hollins._ Painted 1882.] This is the most important, and, to my mind, the most delightful of any of Mrs. Allingham's creations; quite individual, and quite unlike the work of any one else. Not only is the subject a charming one, but the actors in it all hold one's attention. It is certainly destined in the future to hold a high place among the examples of English water-colour art.