Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1864-05-31
M q oorrespondsat ID - y. 2. Post.

SS9eAo-g ~. AAA9 tas1 - -
CERyyfoFd's statue On she Dome Of
the Capitol az RashIngton. l. go
Rpon The Correspondent Of ~ y. Y, Post. j
-clil WAsHIHGTOR, Aay2Tt 1854 4
An interesting correspondence In arsfcr-
euce TO the statue Of Liberty on the dome.
of the Capitol has just come 10 light here
through the 4iustrumeatAlity OF MI Rice.
chairman of the Committee Of Public Bull 4
diugs andLauds Nr.Rice ana othet mem.
bsrs of the committee Wsre, disSatisHsd
with the helmet which crowns the, statue,
and letter was addressed to Mr.. Walter,
the architect of the Capital extension, ask
ing him if it were possible 10 displace the
helmet and return to Mr.. CraWford's origi.
nal design. Mr.. Walteris opposed to any
attempts at improvement now that the
statue lie fxed in its place and Mr. CraE-
ford iS dead. He submits %. correspon-
dence between Captain Meigs. and Mr..
Crawford and Je tfsrsOn Davis, which is'eI-
tremely interesting. There are letters,
however, which do not appear in this cor :
respondenoe, and which undoubtedly have
been lost. In these letters Mr. Davis OBJ
jects to the liberty cap as a part of of the
crest of the statue. In June. 1856, Mr..
CraGford remittsd his 6rst design. He says:
al have endeAvored to represent Freedom
triumphant in peace and var, the wreath
on her head has double Specification and
Allusion to Ihis-one.bsf Of it being COM
posed. of wheat sprigs, the other half of
laurel" -
In October Of the same year Mr.. Craw
ford modi6sd his FIRST design, after having
seen Mr.. Walters plans for the architec.
ture of the Capitol In Mr.. Crawford's
letter to Captain Meigs duriag this month
occurS the subjuiusd Singular passage: :
att is quite possible that Mr.. Jefferson
Davis may, AZ upon q fofnar oerGgio1, OBJ f.
ject to the cap OF Liberty and the faces. I
can only say in reply that the work is for
the people, and they must be addressed in
language they understand, and which has
become uuaIterable for the masses. ae 80
"The emblems atlnde to can never be
replaced By an Invention of the artist all
that can be done is 10 add 70 them, as 1
have done, by placing the cit6let of stars
around the cap Of liberty ii thus becomes
more picturesque, and nothing of its gem
orally understood adjudication is lost.
might, did Iimepermit, enter upon lengthy
in the use OF accessories, and that those
only of the simplest and most Ineligible
character can be admitted, particularly In
works destined for the insLruetion and graft
i6cation of the public. All arguments,
however, must reduce themselves iuto the
question win the people understand II 2
l, therefore, hope the Secretary will allow
the Omblems to pass muster T.. -s.,-I
Il have said the statue represents armed
Liberty She rests upon the shield of our
country, the triumph Of which 10 made ap-
parent by the wreath held in the same hand
which grasps the shield; in her right hand
she holds the sheathed sword, to show the
fight is over for the present, but ready for
use whenever required. The stars upon
her brow indicate her heavenly origin; her
position upon the globe represents her pro.
lection OF the American, World-the justice
whose cause is made apparent BY the en-.
blems supporting It."
subjoin Jefferson Davis letter to Cap
tain MeiRs entire: -H.n .r-erf-a n