seems to me, its greatest claim to consideration. It is infused with a somewhat hectic gaiety which holds a not unimportant place in the lives of us suffering from this "sick disease of modern life." Of the sick disease itself, Cheret gives no hint. He is unflagging in his vivacity, unswerving in his insistence on the _joie de vivre_; instead of pondering over the inevitable sorrow of life, he busies himself depicting the naive grace of the child, the elegance of the mondaine. His gifts lead him inevitably to such subjects. His merit as a draughtsman lies, in part, in vivacious rather than correct line: gaiety, as we have seen, is the chief quality of his colour: his composition is remarkable on account of the piquancy and appropriateness of its detail. He chooses with unerring fidelity the subjects suited to his temperament and his gifts. These subjects are not of infinite variety, and it follows that if one sees a great quantity of Cheret's work together, one becomes aware of a certain feeling of monotony. One can be satiated even of Cheret's gaiety and joyousness. To attempt any account of Cheret's thousand and more posters, is obviously impossible in any but an elaborate monograph devoted exclusively to him. I can do no more here than comment on a few of the most striking. It may be stated generally, that while the earlier ones are rarest because most difficult to procure, the more recent designs show the artist at his best. A mastery of chromo-lithography such as his, cannot be obtained without many essays, some of which are foredoomed to failure. In addition, Cheret has gradually improved alike in the splendour of his colour, and the disposal of his pattern. Perhaps he has never been happier in his treatment of children than in one or two of the "Buttes-Chaumont" series. The joy of the little ones in the possession of their new playthings is contagious. Utterly different in kind, though not less conspicuously successful, is "Les Coulisses de l'Opera au Musee Grevin," a delightfully piquant representation of a group of premieres danseuses in the traditional costume. As a specimen of amazingly effective and strangely beautiful colour, it would be difficult to exceed the "Loie Fuller" series; while, in the matter of pert gracefulness, Cheret has done nothing more delicious than the chic little lady in the yellow dress who smiles at you in the "Pantomimes Lumineuses." Anybody who could resist her fascinations would be a rival to St. Anthony. No collector of course, will overlook the great series of _affiches_ which Cheret has contrived for the Folies Bergere, the Moulin Rouge, the Alcazar d'Ete, and similar places of amusement In order to sum up his talent as a designer of posters, Cheret has produced four decorative panels, which, although without lettering, [Illustration: 0056] [Illustration: 0058] [Illustration: 0060] [Illustration: 0062] [Illustration: 0064] [Illustration: 0066]