Did the "Masters" of old draw well?

[Timothy C. Tyler]

This is a spin off of a thread that got off track. The discussion turned to whether or not the esteemed masters actually drew well. Visual examples are most welcome and helpful.

I personally like the artists from 1830-1920 (mostly those in France and England). These are not counted as old masters by some books but maybe we can here. I think that Bouguereau drew well AND chose how to draw hands, for example, in a way which clearly depicted what he wanted to say. It takes some thought and time to draw a hand which is perfectly expressive. He drew at least one full "cartoon" for every painting.

I think his drawings had more life and looseness than Ingres or David...generally.