Rockingham, but now of Lord Fitz-William. These buildings are situated on the road to Barnsley. From Rotherham I proceeded about six miles through a pleasant country to Maltby, which is agreeably situated under the side of a hill, and has a good Church, with a spire. Here the road suddenly turns to the right, along the height above the town. Below, in the vale, at about the distance of one mile and a half, and embosomed in trees, is ROCHE most conspicuous, is a Sleeping Cupid, by Guido; Boys blowing Bubbles, and eating Oysters, by Lely; a Portuguese Courtesan, by Paul Giordano; Christ taken from the Cross, by Carracci; a Portrait of Rembrandt, by himself; a reputed original of Shakespeare, formerly in the possession of the Poet Dryden; Lucretia stabbing herself, by Guido; and a Magdalen, by Titian. In the Museum are some very valuable antiques, and copies after them. Wentworth Park includes an area of 1600 acres, comprising a great variety of ground, richly clothed with wood, and animated by fine expanses of water. Several ornamental buildings have also been erected in different parts: the principal of these is a superb Mausoleum, to the memory of the late illustrious MARQUIS OF ROCKINGHAM, one of the most eminent statesmen that ever directed the Councils of Britain. It consists of three divisions, in the centre of the lowermost of which, is a statue of the Marquis, in his robes, by Nollekins, standing on a square pedestal, which is inscribed with a long, but deserved, eulogium, on the talents and virtues of the deceased. In recesses in the wall of this apartment, are busts of eight of the Marquis's principal friends, and associates. in state affairs. E. ROCHE ABBEY. EVERY thing a traveller can wish, to render a place delightful, will be found concentrated in this most enchanting spot: majestic woods, expansive water, romantic rocks, an agreeable ruin, and, withal, most commodious walks, for the convenience of viewing its various beauties. The ruins of this Abbey are not extensive; but that is amply compensated, by the superior quality of the surrounding scenery. The day being particularly fine, every thing appeared to be alive around this venerable remain: parties of pleasure were taking their repast upon the grass; others were wandering leisurely in the shade, to avoid the extreme heat; and occasionally flitted past, a female figure or two, whose white and expanded drapery flowing after them in easy, undulating folds, made them appear to skim along like sylphs. They must be cold-hearted mortals, who could think much of any trouble that would enable them to enjoy such an assemblage of rich and fascinating views as this place abounds with. Advancing up one of the walks, my eye was caught by a most beautiful effect of light and shade; indeed, the great interest of the view arose out of it entirely. It was one of those fortunate incidental combinations that the artist is so anxious to preserve. The walk in which I stood, was dark; its trees formed the fore-ground, and hung pendulous over the scene, just clearing the objects, in part, from the sky. Beyond appeared a Gothic gate, highly illuminated by the setting sun, the recess of the gate being quite dark; a cart, and two or three figures, were seen just touched by the evening ray, sparkling against it in the most lively and magical manner.* Roche, or De-Rupe, a Cistercian Abbey, was founded by Richard de Builli, and Richard FitzTurgis, or De Wickerslai, A. D. 1147, and was dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Its yearly revenues While busy in securing the transitory beauties of this scene, a stranger asked permission to sit down by me to sketch. He had been much perplexed, he said, with the dark under the arch of the gate, to know how to force it back; to obtain which end, he had made the trees on the fore-ground very black; but this had made his sketch muddy and heavy. I observed, that he should have left the recess the darkest, as it appeared in nature, and all would have been well; as neither light nor dark had, in themselves, the power to advance in a picture. Besides, he must recollect, what Sir Joshua Reynolds had some where observed, "that the best effect would not result from the strongest dark being on the fore-ground, but the contrary." The strongest relief will often be obtained by the great dark being thrown into the middle distance, and perhaps the most natural. A young lady once asked me, "if a landscape could be made without a tree in the corner?" She might have put the same query of dark fore-grounds. I never think of " a tree in the corner," but it makes me tremble for the arts, when thus subjected to the unnatural caprices of bad taste. |