Landseer was elected a Royal Academician in 1831. "Chevy Chase" (1826), which is at Woburn, "The Highland Whisky Still" (1829), "High Life" (1829) and "Low Life" (1829), be sides other important works, had appeared in the interval. Land seer had by this time attained such amazing mastery that he painted "Spaniel and Rabbit" in two hours and a half, "Rabbits" in three-quarters of an hour and the fine dog-picture "Odin" (1836) at one sitting, i.e., within 12 hours. But perhaps the most wonderful instance of his rapid but sure and dexterous brush handling was "The Cavalier's Pets" (1845), the picture of two King Charles's spaniels in the National Gallery, which was exe cuted in two days. "Harvest in the Highlands," and that master piece of humour, "Jack in Office," were exhibited in 1833.
In 1834 he painted "Suspense," now at South Kensington, which shows a dog watching at the closed door of his wounded master; other well-known pictures are "A Distinguished Member of the Humane Society," a dog reclining on a quay wall (1839) "Dignity and Impudence" (1839) ; and "Eos," a portrait of Prince Albert's greyhound; and the "Monarch of the Glen," one of three subjects connected with the chase which in 185o Landseer was commissioned to paint in the Houses of Parliament, but the mat ter was dropped because the House of Commons refused to grant more than £1,500 for the pictures. Landseer was knighted in 185o, and in the next few years produced several pictures, includ ing "Titania and Boltom" (1851). Signs of failing health were
remarked in "Man proposes, God disposes" (1864), a picture of bears clambering over the relics of Sir John Franklin's party. In 1864 "A Piper and a Pair of Nutcrackers" revealed his old power. Landseer sold "Peace" and "War" for £1,500 and for the copy rights alone obtained L6,000. In 1881 "Man Proposes, God Dis poses" (1864) was resold for 6,30o guineas and a cartoon of "The Chase" (1866) fetched 5,000 guineas. He declined the presidency of the Royal Academy in 1865. In 1867 his four lions for the base of the Nelson Monument in London were unveiled. He died on Oct. I, 1873, and was buried in St. Paul's Cathedral. A collec tion of his sketches is in the Victoria and Albert Museum. Those who would see the full strength of Landseer's brush should exam ine this collection, for in these he shows himself endowed with the strength of Paul Potter.
See Algernon Graves's Catalogue of the Works of the late Sir Edwin Landseer, R.A. (London, n.d.) ; Frederic G. Stephens's Sir Edwin Landseer (188o) ; W. Cosmo Monkhouse's The Studies of Sir Edwin Landseer, R.A., with a History of his Art-Life (n.d.) ; W. P. Frith's My Autobiography and Reminiscences (1887) ; Vernon Heath's Recol lections (1892) ; and James A. Manson's "Sir Edwin Landseer R.A.," The Makers of British Art (1902).