Page:Great Men and Famous Women Volume 8.djvu/43

RAPHAEL 223 " On me, my beloved Raffaello, devolves the task of informing you of the events which have taken place at Urbino. May this letter find you prepared for all the changes of life ; a wise man will never suffer himself to be taken by sur- prise ; this is true philosophy, and the only philosophy that can serve us ! An epidemic has prevailed at Urbino, and has entered your paternal dwelling. Need I say more ? Come to me, my son, at Perugia, for I am the only parent that re- mains to you. Pietro Perugino." As he hastily arose, a crucifix which his mother had suspended to his neck at parting, fell from his bosom. Even the symbols of religion are sacred where the living principle has been early implanted in the heart. He pressed it to his lips: " Ah ! " thought he, " what is the philosophy of Perugino, compared to the faith of which this is the emblem?" His thoughts went back to infancy and child- hood, and his grief and remorse grew less intense. He dwelt on the deep and enduring love of his parents till he felt assured death could not extinguish it, and that he should see them again in a brighter sphere. When morning came it found Raphael calm and composed ; the lines of grief and thought were deeply marked on his youthful face ; but the whirlwind and the storm had passed. He took leave of his friends, and hastened to Perugino, who received him with the fondness of a parent. Here he remained some time, and at length collected sufficient resolu- tion to return to Urbino, and once more enter the mansion of his desolated home. It was necessary for him to reside at his native place for a number of months. During that time he painted several fine pictures. His heart, however, yearned for Florence, and he returned to it once more with the determination of making it his home. With far different sensations did he a second time enter the city of beauty. The freshness of his gayety was blighted ; lessons of earthly disappoint- ment were ever present to his mind, and he returned to it with the resolute pur- pose of devoting himself to serious occupation. How well he fulfilled this resolution all Italy can bear witness. From this time he adopted what has been called his second manner. He painted for the Duke of Urbino the beautiful picture of the Saviour at sunrise, with the morning light cast over a face resplendent with divinity ; the flowers glittering with dew, the two disciples beyond, still buried in slumber, at the time when the Saviour turns his eyes upon them with that tender and sorrowful exclamation, " Could ye not watch one hour ? " Raphael enriched the city of Florence with his works. When asked what had suggested some of the beautiful combinations of his paintings, he said, " They came to me in my sleep." At other times he called them " visions ; " and then again said they were the result of " una certa idea che mi viene alia mente." It was this power of drawing from the deep wells of his own mind that gave such character, originality, and freshness to his works. He found that power within which so many seek, and seek in vain, without. At the age of twenty-five Raphael was summoned by the pope to paint the