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HOUDRT

had not at this period abandoned his favourite studies. Some time before his deatli, however, he had lost his eyesight and fallen into dotage. Among the papers found after his death were a life of Cardinal de B^rulle, a treatise on the coming of Elias, a. Hebrew grammar, and notes on the theory of Astruc touching the com- position of Genesis.

Houbigant's piety was on a par with his learning; his conversation was most amiable, without the slightest trace of the sarcasm pervading some pages of his writings, and his patience and tireless energy are highly commended by all those who knew him. He had founded at Avilly a school for girls, in which he set up a complete outfit for the printing of his books, himself acting as typesetter. His works on Hebrew philology have fallen into oblivion; the deliberate discarding of vocal signs and the unlikely and un- warranted pronunciation adopted foredoomed them to failure. On the other hand, his Latin translation of the Bible is, for the clearness, energy, and polish of the language, deservedly praised; not so, however, all the rules of textual criticism laid down in the " Prolegomena", and the application of these rules in the " Biblia hebraica" marred by too many unneces- sary and conjectural corrections of the Massoretic text. The work nevertheless contains abundant valuable suggestions which modern critics liave ratified, and on this score full justice is not ahvays rendered to the learned Oratorian, who was doubtless one of the ablest Biblical scholars of his time.

Ravius, Spec. Observat. ad Huhigantii Prolcg, in Scripluram (Trier, 1776) ; Cadry, Notice sur la vie et les ouvrages du P. Houbi- gant in Magasin Enci/cloprdique (Paris, May 1.S06): Feller, Dictionnaire fiiftlorique, \'ll (Paris, 1822); Incjold, Essai de Bibliotheque Oratorienne (Paris, 1880).

Chakles L. Souvay.

Houdon, Jean-Antoine, b. at Versailles, 1741; d. 16 July, 1828; the most distinguished sculptor of France during the latter half of the eighteenth century.

He was trained under Slodtz and Pigalle and won the coveted Prix de Rome before he was twenty. In Italy he found a second Renais- sance, due to the rediscovery of an- tiques and to the influence of Winck- elmann. One of Houdon's first efforts, a work he never surpassed, was the heroic statue of St. Bruno for the church of Sta Maria degli Angeli. Its aus- tere simplicity and strength drew from Clement XIV the famous words, " He would even speak, did not the Rule of his Order compel silence". On his return to Paris, Houdon sent his "Morpheus" to the Salon of 1771 and, owing to it, was made an associate of the Acad- emy, becoming a full member in 1775. He also be- gan that striking series of busts that brought the entire age before his modelling stool — Prince Gallitzin, Prince Henry of Prussia, the Dukes of Saxe-Gotha, Cather- ine II of Russia, the actress Sophie Arnould as Iph- igenia, and that wonderful terra-cotta of Gluck, the composer, in the Royal Museum, Berhn. Appointed teacher at the Academy, Houdon presented to it, for the use of the students, his well-known "Ecorchd", the human figure stripped of its skin to show the muscles and tendons uncovered; this is still used in

Jean-Antoine Houdon

most art schools. Diderot, D'AJembert, Gerbier, Turgot, Buffon, Palissot, Mirabeau, Barnave sat in turn for their portraits. Hearing of the death of Rousseau (1778), the sculptor hastened to Ermenon- ville to take a mask of the face; from this he modelled the remarkable head in the Louvre. In 1780 he made the portrait of Lafayette which is now in the State House, Richmond, Virginia, and in 1781 the draped statue of Voltaire at the Theatre Fran^ais, with its antique air and curiously modern visage. The Marlchal de Tourville is of about the same period. The noted bronze "Diana" of the Louvre dates from 1783; the marble original, "twin sister of the Apollo Belvedere", was refused at the Salon on account of its scanty raiment (Hermitage, St. Petersburg). On 22 July, 178.5, Houdon sailed for America with Franklin, whose bust he had previously made. He was re- ceived at Philadelphia and spent two weeks at Mount Vernon making studies of Washington, which he took back at once to Paris, and from which he produced the bust now in the collection of Mr. Hamilton Fish, New York, and the statue for the State House, Rich- mond, Virginia. It was proposed to put Washington in classic garb, but he chose to be in uniform. The same year, 1785, Houdon modelled the " Frileuse" (Mus6e of Montpellier), a female figure shivering with cold, as a companion piece for his " Summer". Among his most charming works are the Boignart children (Louvre) and his daughter Sabine in adolescence — delicate heads, instinct with life, and so fresh they might have emerged yesterday from the clay. In the private park at Bagatelle is an admirable " Baigneuse" in stone, set in a grotto, one foot touching the water. The bust of " Minerva", in the hall of the Institut de France, is also Houdon's. The "Apollo", 1790, is a companion to the " Diana" replica of that year. The Revolution brought an end to all work and com- missions. To pass the time, Houdon was retouching an old "St. Scholastica"; this caused him to be de- nounced to the Convention, and he only saved his life by changing the saint into a figure of "Philosophy". In the early days he had made portraits of Du Barry, Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette, the Princesses Adelaide and Elisabeth, and the Court, not to mention the Encyclopedists and the noted men of the Revolution. He lived to add Napoleon and the Empress Josephine to the collection. In the end his mind clouded, and he slept away the last measure of his life. Possessed of great simplicity and openness of mind, and of a happy spirit, Houdon had been much sought after for the charm of his conversation, and his recollections of illustrious personages. In technic he is direct and simple; his paramount qualities are lifelikeness and spontaneity.

DiLKE, French Architects and Sculptors of the Eighteenth Cen- tury (London, 1900); Shedd, Famous Sculptors and Sculptures (Boston, 1881); Lubke, History of Sculpture^ tr. Bunnett (London, 1872). M. L. HanDLET.

Houdry, Vincent, preacher and writer on ascetics; b. 22 January, 1631, at Tours; d. 21 March, 1729, at Paris. According to the catalogues of the Society of Jesus, the principal details of Houdry's biography are as follows: On 10 October, 16-47, he entered the Society of Jesus at Paris and after his novitiate fol- lowed the regular course of studies (three years philos- ophy and four years theology). For a considerable while he was engaged in teaching: classics, si.x years; rhetoric, one year; philosophy, four years. After this he became a celebrated pulpit orator, preaching for the next twenty-five years in the more important cities of France. During the remainder of his life he was principally occupied in WTiting sermons. His obituary in the archives of the Society, besides his talent as an orator, praises his never-tiring industry, both as a speaker and a writer. Among his virtues, his faithful observance of the rules, even to the ninety- ninth year of his life, is especially mentioned.