Page 118 - La Société canadienne d'histoire de l'Église catholique - Rapport 1961
P. 118
114 WISCONSIN HISTORICAL COLLECTIONS.
he soon composed himself, only wishing that he had his gun.
But the bear soon passed off into the brush, and young ROCEEY
as rapidly out of it-the separation apparently mutual.
He returned to Pennsylvania in the spring of 1816, to go to
school-walking all the way to Pittsburgh, as no stages were
then running in that region. While attending school, he first
conceived the idea of painting; he copied figures from tea trays,
and began to cultivate and develop his artistic taste. As there
were no works of art to study in that part of the country, he
went to Philadelphia in December, 1817, and remained there
till March following, picking up what information he could,
when he went to the Susquehanna country, and remained six
years. In December, 1824, he again went to Philadelphia, de-
termined to become a portrait painter. He took a letter of
introduction from WM. Cox ELLIS, cashier of a bank at Milton
for which he had painted n, sign exhibiting more than common
skill, to his brother, CHARLES ELLIS, who proved a kind friend
and patron of the young artist.
He received six meeks instruction from THOMAS a
~~IRCH,
well-known landscape and marine painter; and spent some time
in antique drawing from the collections of the Pennsylvania
Academy of the Fine Arts. From every artist whose acqnain-
tance he made, he derived new information. Mr. B. OTIS was
tho first portrait painter to whose rooms he had access, and he
found him generous and communicative. He also found the
elder SULLY very friendly, and always ready to impart instruc-
tion. The first palette he had regularly set for him, was handed
him by TIIOXAS SULLY, Jr., arranged by his father. ROCHEY
found Mr. NAGLE, a young artist, enthusiastically devoted to
his profession. They spent long winter evenings in drawing
together, at NAGLE'S house, from casts, by lamp-light; until at
length NAGLE became very active in getting up the Artists'
Fund Society, in opposition to the Academy of the Fine AlSts,
in which ROCKEY did not agree with him. Thus has Mr. ROCKEY
progressed, step by step, until he has taken high rank as a por-
trait painter, and almost entirely a self-taught artist.