Life of John Gibson R A Sculptor Author:Elizabeth Rigby Eastlake Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER III. Departure for Rome—Madame Pasta—Canova's Liberality— Introduced at Canova's Academy—Education of a Sculptor at Rome—"T/ie Sleeping Shepherd'"—Com... more »missions from Duke of Devonshire and Sir George Beaumont—Happiness at Rome— Sir Watkin Williams Wynn. ' T LEFT England for Rome in September, - 1817. A gentleman whose acquaintance I had made in London, Mr. Bonomi, procured for me a letter of introduction to Mr. Bartolozzi, then residing in Paris with his daughter, Madame Vestris : she was ill in bed, and I did not see her, but he was remarkably kind to me, taking me about the place. I could not speak any language but English and Welsh ; the latter, however, was of no use to me in Paris. ' In the course of a few days Mr. Bartolozzi found a Roman vetturino who was about to return to Rome, which was a fortunate circumstance for me. I was further so fortunate as to share the carriage with a young Scotchman of the name of Graham. This gentleman had a servant with him who spoke English, French, and Italian, and heArrival in Rome. 45 took care of me as well as of his master in the way of interpretation. There was also another vettura which kept company with us as far as Milan, and in that was Madame Pasta with her young husband and her mother.' We have often heard Mr. Gibson describe this grand and truly Italian lady, then just commencing her distinguished career; how she would pour forth her glorious voice in snatches of song as they walked up and down the hills, and how she would occasionally exert it too in scolding her husband, ' which,' he used to add, ' impressed me with a profound conviction of the resources of the Italian language for such feminine purposes.' ' When we arrived at Florence, my companion, Mr. Graham, remained there, and I proceeded on my way...« less