24Jul1876, Painting Wellington's Forehead

LONDON, July 24th-30th, 1876.
—Ld. and Ly. Robartes. He and Uncle W. were good company at breakfast. He told me an anecdote of the D. of Wellington's always insisting on having his forehead represented in painting or sculpture wider than it was, and Chantrey telling Lucas, to whom the Duke was sitting. Uncle W. (so exactly like him!) took the story desperately to heart as being unworthy of the Duke's high sense of truth; and it was impossible to make him see how the story might be quite consistent with his truth of intention: he might have honestly supposed his forehead wider and Chantrey may have humoured him.