The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1875-04-30

The Boy sculptor.
Four hundred years ago, in the gar
dens of the Medici Palace, might be
seen a party of the young friends of
Piero de Medici, who had been dis
missed from the learned talk of the
savants and artists who surrounded the
the hospitable table of " Lorenzo Mag
nifcent," as he is often called
There had been an unusual fall of
snow for the warm climate of Italy, and
it lay before them on the ground i'll that
soft, tempting Wilderness that school
boys like SO well. 1t covered the statues
and fountains, and made grotesque
figures of the shrubs, which were cut in
curious forms.
"Let us make statues, and decorate
this gallery" proposed one, youth of
fourteen.
"Of what" said another.
"Of the snow" replied the first
speaker, named Michael Angelo; and
with merry shouts they plunged into the
snow, without thought of their cos
tunes of velvet and lace, carrying it and
! piling it in masses at different places
along the gallery, and shaping it into
some rude resemblance of the human
form, which did not much differ, l dare
say from the "old snowman" of the
boys of the nineteenth century.
But Michael Angelo saw in the dis
lance the statue of faun, headless and
much injured, which had been brought
from some old ruin.
"Ah! 1 will make head to this
faun, and he began shaping and mold
ing the damp snow.
AS he worked, his companions gath
cred around him and looked ON, forget
| ting their own sport in watching him, as
| gradually the head began to appear and
grew under his touch into real face
with good features.
Then standing. watching the effect of
each motion, "He must be sardonic-
fauns laugh |" said the boy as he gave an
of the mouth. "There that is not bad !;
and one can always do what one loves. 1
have drawn in the love of sculpture with
the milk of my nurse. Her husband is
sculptor, and, from a baby, 1 have
played making statues.
Stepping back to get a good look at
his work, he ran against some one, and,
to his amazement, discovered it was the
great noble himself, who, followed by all
his guests, had entered the gallery the
youthful artists were decorating for
them, while they were so engaged as not
to perceive them.
They all stopped to comment on the
statues, and approaching the faun Lo
renzo said:
"This is rather the work of one enter
ing upon the career of a master than the
attempt of novice. But, Michael, do
you know that this is statue of an old
faun, and the old do not have all their
teeth? You have given him more than
zoe have. Is it not so, my friends z"
"You are right, my lord;" and, with
one stroke, Michael knocked out tooth
and made the hollow in the gum which
showed its loss.
Every one was delighted with this in
telligent and discriminating act, and APP
plauded him with enthusiasm, showering
praises and prophesies of future fame on
the young sculptor
Among the noble guests were his
father and his uncle, who had sternly
discouraged all Michael's attempts at
art, and deemed it an unworthy thing
that the heir of the princely house of
!
chisel even in sport. But now, flattered
by the praise of Lorenzo, the great
patron of art, they looked smilingly on,
and Michael knew, as he rode home that
night with his austere relations, that his
long forbidden love of art could now be
INDUCED the glory of his boyhood's
dreams was to become the glory of his
life.
Who can tell what forms of beauty and
visions of fame fitted through his ex-
cited brain, wild with the delight of Lo-
renzo's notice.
Could he foresee the wonderful crea-
tons which would make world stand in
silent admiration and awe!
Could he know that under the dome
of st. Peters, mt Rome, the most mag
nificent Christian temple on the earth
people of all nations would come to dc
him HOMAGE
Let us follow his career. At nineteen
he made beautiful group in marble Of
the dead Christ in his mothers lap. III,
carved the colossal statue of the young
David for the Ducal palace of Florence
He designed, and in part completed, the
grand mausoleum for julius H., the cen
trail figure of which is Moses, at which
he worked over forty years; and the re
clining figures of Day and Night, Morn
ing and Evening, are so much admired
that they are to be reproduced on {
monument soon to be erected to Michae
Angelo at the scene of his labors.
There are but few paintings of his OF
| canvas, for he is said to have had con
|, tempt for easel ,,ictures