FINE ARTS.

THE 'NELSON MEMORIAL.

TarsE is yet a chance of having a monument to Nelson, not discredit- able to the country : thanks to the expression of public opinion, the hero is not to be columniated. It was decided by the General Com- mittee On Saturday, that a fresh competition should be had, to which the present competitors are eligible, and other artists also are invited to contribute. The new and revised plans are to be sent in by the last Saturday in May, and the Committee to meet again on the 1st of June. This will give thus., enough for a reconsideration of the old designs, but it is hardly sufficient fly maturing new ones. The award of premiums

by the Sub-Committee is nevertheless confirmed ; and the only prize in the new competition is the erection of the monument—which is well worth trying for. The difficulty, that has been evaded and not removed, again pressets itself—who are to decide? The responsibility of selectine.

onc (:l:,*111, to be carried into effect, is greater than before ; aud, the.asii \vented by past experience of the folly of rashly coming to a concitision—`. the whole heater was settled in less than an hour,"

says Mr. RENNIE—the knowledge and judgment requisite to the task

arc not so readily acquired. To make the new competition eactive, bele:Tiring the artists with confidence in the competency of the judges, it should be intimated that the next Committee of Taste will he com- posed of others than soldiers and sailors, and men " whose rank alone elves them warrant to. decide on matters of art." As the competitors

acquiesce in the distnbutent of the premiums, though evidently not

satisfied either with the ;Wry or the verdict, we will not revive the dis- cussion of a part of the affair now settled; but thus much we lutist he

allswed to say, that a second and more minute inspection attn.. des igns

conlinus ns in the opinion we before expressed, that 11w artists most di'et`ing /i'u not been rewarded. As the exhibition by tickets will

contimst open to the :Seth, the public have the opportunity Of judgieg

for themselves on this point : at any rate a view of the present designs will be a„turd preparative to a considerstiou of those hereafter to be

seat in for the new competition. The artists are anxious to have the opinion of' the public on their merits ; and they came to a resoluff.m, that ” pnhlie exhibition for at least a month previous to the decision is advisable: this will have a beneficial influence on the judgmeut of the Committee of Taste, whoever they may be. The competitors are not satisfied with the treatment they have re- ceived, though their soreness is lessened by the courteous bearing of the Commit tee,—who, however, omitted to acknowledge the exertions of the artists by the compliment of a vote of thanks : they feel that the tarns of the competition have not been abided by, since the holder of the first prize is not allowed to carry his design into effect and they therefore passed a resolution that the Committee be requested "publicly

to issue explicit statement Of the conditions of the fresh competi-

tion." They also suggest an extension of time, and intend to request a conference to discuss sonic minor points. With these very ressonable wishes the Committee will doubtless comply ; such deference is due to a hotly of scientific and practical Men.

There is another point--should the memorial be a sculptural monument, or an architectural structure to which sculpture is subsi- diary? It seems gemsraily agreed that the climate of England and the sooty atmosphere of London are unffivourable to a display of sculpture on a large scale : even groups of bronze would soon be so blackened es to deface all beauty. If this is the opinion of the Committee, it should be expressed at once. Supposing an architectural design to be selected, where the architect is not associated with a sculptor, with whom will the execution of the statue and sculptural ornaments rest. This is a question

to he determined beforelrand. Mr. RENNIE suggested, that the models and drawings few the new competition should be made to one uniform

scale. This is most desirable ; and it would enable the judges to com- pare the effect of the different models more correctly, if a rough model of the site and the surrounding buildings of Trafalgur Square wese constructed, to which each design could be successively applied. This arrangement would require new models and drawings to be made of the revised designs ; but as these at present stand they are all nullities. All who have seen the designs, and are capable of forming a judg- ment of their merits, must agree with Mr. llon,Ey CoettonNE and the Connuittete that no one of them came up to what the occasion required. The astists have now an opportunity of wiping off the reproach of failure ; and We hope that the veterans who Mae been hitherto deterred front entering into the competition, by false delicacy, or fear of Leine: outdone by their younger rivals, will feel that, on the one hand, they have nothing to dread, and on the other, that the credit of the arts requires the best talent to be put forth. To prevent the undue influence of :t great name, however, it is advisable that the designs should be sent ationymously, ill every instance. One went more. Mr. INMAN complained that the plans were un- fairly judged, because a "national" monument was required to be pro- duced out of funds raised by private subscription, and limited in amount. The reply to this cavil is, that the object is a national one ; and that the artist who cannot produce a design adequate to the pur- re. and honourable to the arts of the country, that may be executed lor tieenelL, is not likely to succeed though the sum at his disposal were 3t10,00(1/. When we hear excuses made for tasteless structures on the plea of insufficient funds, we call to mind that noble example of cheap

architecture, St. Paul's, Covent Garden. " I want nothing but a burn,' said the Duke of Beawonu to !IMO JONES: " Your Grace shall have

the finest barn in Europe," was the architect's reply; and well he kept his word. It is not with the fine arts as with the mechanical; linen-

SERIALS. tion and taste in design are shown in beauty and fitness of form and

proportion, more than in redundant ornament or heaped-up masses.

Encyclopedia Britannica, Part VII. Simplicity, the prime element of true grandeur, is at once the cheapest Records of the Kirk qf Scotland ; containing the Acts and Proceedings and the rarest quality in art.