Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1877-02-08
The Artist-SOlditr.

THE story of Andre, as we commonly
read it, tells little of Andre himself. 1t
tells nothing of the manner of man he
was, how he looked, how he dressed, and
what he said and did.
We read of him as the spy. He was
one at the time of his death, but that he
believed to be his military duty; he tried
to serve his King as well as he could, and
perhaps we cannot blame him so very
much, even if we did punish him so sadly.
He was something else than mere spy,
and it is more agreeable to think of him
as an artist than a soldier He did not
love war as some soldiers do, and while
in this country he many times tried to
soften the hardships and troubles of the
times. Once he found poor little boy
who had been captured by the British
soldiers in Westminster County, and
brought to New York to be put into the
dreadful prisons the British then kept in
our city. Such little fellow could do
no harm, and Andre took him away from
the soldiers and sent him back to his
mother in safety.
Besides painting and drawing, Andre
could sing, and make charming verses,
and cut out portraits in silhouette. Many
of his pictures and letters are still pre-
served, and could you read the letters you
would see that he was genial, lively and
entertaining man. While he was in this
country he kept journal, and, it is said,
it was full of pictures of plants and in
sects and animals, people and places, bits
of scenery, and plans OF cities and towns.
He used often to give his pictures away
as presents to his friends; and once, when
he was a prisoner in our hands, and was
sent to Lancaster, Pennsylvania, for
safety, he taught the children in the vii
lage to draw. One of the Lancaster boys
pleased him so much, and displayed SO
much talent, that Andre offered to make
an artist of him, and to take him to En-
gland when the war was at an end. The
boys father would not consent to
this, though he was pleased to
think the English officer should take
so much interest in his son. The prison
ers were afterward removed to Carlisle,
and Andre had to leave his pupil. He
did not forget him, for he afterward
wrote letter to the boys father, in which
he said that the boy "must take particu-
lar care in forming the features in faces,
and in copying the hands exactly. He
should now and then copy things from
the life, and then compare their proper
tons with what prints he may have, or
Wudt rules lie udy I6Lu6ulUCI.
All this was during the war, and Andre
himself was any enemy; but we can hard
ly think of him in that way. He re-
GREETED all the troubles of the times, and,
unlike his brother officers, he never called
us g the rebels,'' but g the colonists''
Even to this day, his letters and little
pictures, his silhouette portraits, and
sketches and verses are preserved in some
families in remembrance of the kind,
merry and cultivated English gentleman
whom we now call Maj. Andre, the spy.
When he was exchanged, he went back
to the British army stationed at Philadel-
phla, and there he again displayed his
many talents. He painted a 0rop-scene
for the theater that was thought TO be very
fine, and they said of it that " the foliage
was uncommonly spirited and graceful"
He also wrote verses to be recited in the
theater, and even took part in the plays.
Once there was a grand pageant in Phila
delphia-a water procession Oh the Della
ware, with gayly-trimmed boats, and
bands of music, and ladies in fancy cos
tumes-all ending in a grand ball. Andre
took an active part in all these pleasur-
ings, designed the costumes for the ladies,
wrote verses, and helped to put up the
decorations.
All InlS happened When our poor ana
discouraged troops were having a sad
time of it. waiting and watching for a
chance to strike blow for the country.
At last, the British were obliged to leave
Philadelphia. Andre went away with
| them to New York, and it was there that
he received the commission TO treat with
Arnold for the surrender of West Point,
and that only ended in his capture and
sad death.
On the last day of his life he drew his
own portrait from memory with a pen
that is, without the aid of mirror-and
the picture is still in existence While in
New York, just before he went up to see
Gen. Arnold, he made several silhouette
portraits Of ladies who then lived there,
and all were said to be remarkably cor
rect hkenesses, and were, of course,
greatly priced afterward as the work of
the young, genial and light-hearted Brit
ish officer.
Those Revolutionary days are now very
old, and the handsome English gentle
man has been dead long, long years. We
can forgive his efforts against US now, and
perhaps it VIII be more agreeable to think
of him as the artist-s9ldier rather than
the spy at West Point.-CharEes Barnard,
in st. Nicholas for February.