of dollars to-day, his
style of art was not appreciated then and would not sell, and he was
glad to paint portraits for a few francs each in order to make a
living. His life in Paris was a continuous struggle with poverty, and
at last he decided to leave. With his wife and children he settled in
a little three-roomed cottage at Barbizon, a tiny little village near
a great forest and only a day's journey from Paris.

Here was Millet's home all the rest of his life. Although still very
poor, the family did not starve, as they came so near doing while they
lived in Paris, for the garden and the fruit trees always provided
them with something to eat.

At that time the popular artists were painting beautiful pictures of
lovely women and men of the nobility in their fine clothes, or of
wonderful saints and angels, and pictures showing only the happier
side of life. To them Millet's pictures came as a shock, bringing to
mind the dirt and grime of the common, everyday tasks of the poorer
French peasants. And, more than that, he made them realize the
dreadful condition in which the French Revolution had left many of
these same peasants, and that was something of which they did not care
to be reminded. So they refused to buy his pictures, and it was not
until the last ten years of his life that Millet received a little of
the recognition and honor that he so richly deserved. With his
increasing fame came better financial conditions, and in 1867 he
received the ribbon of the Legion of Honor.

=Questions about the artist.= Who painted this picture? In what
country did he live? Tell about his mother and father. Who took care
of Millet when he was a boy? What pictures did he copy? Where did he
draw them? With what did he draw? Who encouraged him? What did the
priest teach him? Tell about the picture of the old man leaning on the
cane. Where did he draw this picture? Who saw it? Why do you think it
must have been a good likeness? How did Millet's father feel about it?
What did he do? How did they travel? What did the artist think? How
long did Millet study with him? Why did he return home? What did his
neighbors do for him? What was he obliged to paint for a living? Where
did he move? What kind of pictures were the popular artists of that
day painting? Why were Millet's pictures not popular? When were his
pictures appreciated? Why have his pictures outlived those of the
popular artists of that time?

[Illustration]

HI