The monthly exhibition of this thriving society, which was held yesterday at the Temperance Hall, fairly sustained the average of merit attained at these exhi tions. There were no works of except ally striking merit on the screens and indeed no very ambitious eflyrts to do and there was scarcely veu moderate dimensivus among 'A very large proportion of the pictures was composed of sketches from nature taken in theneighbourhoud of Shauyhai and in other parts of Eh ug thie prettiest and most effective in the room being three little paintings in vil of scenes in Kowloon peninsula. Che distance in all these utile pictures was exceedingly goo, and the general effect was very pleasing and very true to nature Another exceller little painting was a rough sketch" from nature, representing a scene on a creek in the neighbourhood of Shanghai, with a hay Doat and sampan, 'Though admittedly not a finished picture, the sketch showed every of being the' work of a skilled hand, the water being excellently painted, and the whole acone having the very atmosphere and tone of the little scones of this sort which one frequently comes upon among the creeks in the neighbourhood of Shanghai, Among other Chinese landscapes were a very pretty little water-colour ketch of a scene on the Svochow Creek, in a sketch-book, a pretty picture of the well-known bridge at Wang-doo, a view of the Lung Hua Pagoda, with the sur-jing country and the peach-trees in an effective little piece of bright colouring; in oils representing a_scene son the Soochow Creek below Jessfield, a clover little sketch of the pond in the Country Club grounds, and many other colour dra of more or less merit, A marine sketch, representing a frigate under sail in a rough sea, was exceedingly natural and pleasing; and among the best of the copies were two very skilfully executed sepia drawings cupied from Leeeh's studies. A more ambitious effort was an oil painting representing a po irl sitting in an old archway figure is very well painted, and the whole picluro possesses a high degree of merit.
Southwell Cathedral" wasa carefully executed and successful piece of architvettral drawing; @ little water-colour drawing taken from an engraving made a very pleasing little picture; and there were Some pretty studies of flowers, notably a sprig of wild roses, a group of buttercups and daisies, and a study of tulips. A cloverly executed portrait in black and white, taken from a photograph, was readily recognisable. In the way Of de-curative art the most noteworthy exhibits wore three fine specimens of lustra-painting—awreathes of leaves and fi wers painted in tinted bronzes on black and coloured velvet, the effect being very striking and artistic Thor were several plaques, decorated with flowers, butterflies and other pretty objects; a banner, with flowers painted on white silk, was pleasing; and a plaque inva framework of velvet, with a snow scene in the centre, was an effective piece of art-decoration, The competition this month was for decorated fans, of which four were exhibited, The most artistic and original of these was numbered and please Party collating of gute wdacape with rising ofa Japanese girl was however sadly out of Arawing. Two other fans were prettily decorated with tulips and other flowers, and 8 fourth had in the centro a little garden scene, with a spray of flowers surrounds and partly falling over the little scene.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.