The Woodstock age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1844-1845, 1844-06-06
POWERS, THE SCULPTOR

i'ON URS, TIE SCULPTOR.
.dma'@g IRccd0tc.--A friend of Ours,
= gentleman who spent Il part Of the past
~'inter in Italy, has related to US a capt.
tai anccdote which was told BY Powers
while Il party of Americans were willing
away TN evening at his house in Florence.
Che great sculptor is said to be born
wac, and tells Il Yankee story in a style
,hat not even Marble or Hill can ever
noDo to imitutc. We know that the an
c.dote must suffer in our hands; yet we
hall attempt to 9 i've it as nearly as posi-
bic in the words oi'thc artist.
\ few months since, said Powers,
received letter post-markcd at Lcghom,
rhivh proved to be the commencement
OF correspondence from an eccentric
s-nius that had never seen or heard of
before. The old gentleman, for such
Ancw him to be by his style and pcnman-
ship, wrote me that he had experienced
avery tedious passage from Boston, was
dreadful sca-sck on his voyage, had a
gale OF wind every few days, stated how
many fellow passengers he had, how
many ropes had been broken how he
had Jared sc. &C., and all this in the
plaincst, simplest, and most un ;ophstiGa-
ted style, and with as much freedom and
familiarity as though he had been my ia
Their, and | must necessarily feel deep
interest in every incident Of his travels,
A few days afterwards received anolh-
or letter, in which he told me all that had
occurred to him since he landed in Italy,
and stating, three or four times before he
conSluded, that he had written to me a
few days before lie informed me also
that he would be at Florence in Il few days,
when he hoped to have the pleasure OF
seeing me face to face" lie Thought,
however, that this pleasure might possibly
be delayed few weeks, for he was ofhlIi
a mind to 90 down 10 Rome aud Maple,
before he visited me-
Three days afterwards rccei we'd third
letter from my unknown friend, in which
he said he was sorry to inform me that he
had fully determined to 90 to the south OF!
Italy, repeatedly dwelling upon MS regret
that he could not come "straight' to see
me, and at the same time informing nc
that he was ''prctiy well oil in the world, -
having made "as much as he should wan,
by trading in Boston," and having enc
chick nor child 10 cry for bread" Ia each
ofthc two latter cp!s,les he was careful to
advert 10 the previous communication, and
TO recapliulaie all that he had said in them
in style not much unlike that for which
Mr. Slick is so notorious, and in a hand
writing which required all my pom0S land
have family of some five or siX) TO de-
cipher. But the most amusing things in
the last letter were the nDta Jcac aud pOsi-
scripts with which, by-lhc-way, all Of them
more or lessy bounded After having made
two or three at the foot Of the third letter,
the old gentleman could no, put it into
the post without adding two or three more
on the back after it was sealed. Those on
the back ran ihus:-
IN. B. think after all shall see You
in few days"
up. S. fl lido not see you, | will write
to yon,"
"p. S. ogaia. If you should not hear
from me in a month, Won may conclude
that have gone to the HOiy LGad"
Well, continued Powers, in his peculiar
~ humorous au,. happy manner, while
did not complain at paying postage Oh the
cid gen,eman's letters, mast confess that
| was rather pleased at the idea that he was
probaby on his way to Jerusalem, for he
did not seem to need any of my assistance
in anything. and the information winch he
communicated had not aided me much in
my profession, producing always degree
ol excitement in the risibIe faculties too
immodcratc to be beneficial.
Some two months afterwards, while oc-
cupled chlscl in hand over some of the fin
i5hing traces OF my f.yotite Eve an old
gentleman, with slouchcd lat aud pep.
per and salt cost with heavy, sagglng peck
cts at tic sides, entered my studio, aud
took seat upon block marble. made
my best bow, invited him to a chair, and
continued my work. He then pulled a
corn-cob out of one pocket and the barrel
Of a goose-quil! on, OF the other, and insert
Ing the latter into the former, asked me If
ever Smohed. On being answered in
the negative, he sad, 81 always smoke
when | can get chance;" and, raking
birthstone match along the bottom of his
left shoe, set fire to the tobacco with which
he had loaded his pipe, and began putting
away like steamboat. After sitting and
smoking for about a quarter of an hour, he
stood up, and looking me fall in the face,
asked, with genuine "Down-East" drawl-
SIS your name POwrS"
"That is my name, sir.
"lVhatl Hiram Powers"
"The same, sir-yonr humble sCry ant