The Newtown bee., 1880-12-15
Statues of washington:

A New York paper says: Very few of those to whom Henry Kirke Browns equestrian statue of Washington in Union square is familiar figure are aware that it is the first bronze statue ever wholly executed in this country. It was comm enced in 1853 and dedicated July 4, 1856, so that it is not yet quar- ter of a century since the first statue in bronze was actually produced in the United States independent of foreign assistance. Its locat' on in Union square was provided for by the private subscrip- tions of gentlemen of wealth and culture resident in that vicinity, who have long since moved uptown, leaving an artistic property which belongs to them by pur- chase to embellish quarter devoted to business purposes. And this recalls some facts as to existing statues of Washington which it may be worth the while to remember. The three earliest were executed by artists of great repu- tation, but only one of them was taken fro,n life. This was provided for in l784 by a special act of the legislature of the State of Virginia. Governor Harri- SOD, of that State, applied to Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin, who were then in Paris, to assist him in the selection of competent artist, and they c Houdon, regarded as one of the most distinguished sculptors in Europe, who visited this country in l7o5, and passed the major part of the month Of October at Mount Vernon ih modelling the bust of his illustrious subject Having fin- ished his task, he returned to Paris and executed the only statue of Washin eton which represents him as he appeared in lite. He was then ffty-four years of age. The figure. which now graces the State capitol, is valuable not only as a work of art, but for it's remarkably ex- act reproduction of the lineaments Of the great Revolutionary hero. Canovd' s statue, which presents Washington in sitting posture and in Roman costume, was, unfortunately, materially injured by the fire which nearly destroyed the capitol at Raleigh, N. c. Chantrey7s, which is one of the attractions of the State house in Boston, conceives the Father of his Country as military hero, and displays to advantage his command ing figure; but, like Canova's, it is an ideal conception of the classical school, with no pretentiOns to authenticity. The next attempt of note IS tL at oi Horatio Gfeenough, one of our earliest sculptors, which was finished in lS43, and engaged the h md of the artist dur ing eight years residence in Italy. It is 8 colossal statue, representing Washing
 ton in q sitting posture, the lower part of the figure swathed in a graceful drapery. Originally intended for the rotunda of the capitol at Washington, it now graces the eastern front ot the building. The treatment is poetical rather than historical. The next i'm portant work was that of Brown on Union square and two years later, in 1868, Ora wford's colossal statue. designed by him under a commission from the 5 ate of Virginia, and surmountlng the Washington monument on Capitol hill.
 was completed and dedicated with great enthusiasm. It was cast in Germany under Ora wford's personal supervision. 1 On February g, 1960-the one hundred and twenty eighth anniversary of hiS birth. the celebrated Mills statue, exc l cuted under an order froal the goyet | ment, WAS dedicated in the city ol Washington. It is 8 purely military conception of the central figure in oul Revolutionary history, and portray: Washington with the fire of conflict II his face, as he appeared Gin the imagin.
 ation of the artist at leasD at the battlt l of Monmouth -one of the most desper ately contested fields of the war for in dependence. The Ball statue ID tht
 Public garden in Boston, finished il I 1868, is an equestrian figure similar IT
 conception to that on Union square
 and, like its predecessor, was erected by
 private subscription. The heroic figure
 executed by J. 0. 4. Ward in 1879 as ;
 present to the old town of Newburyport
 by MT. Daniel Ingalls, Penney, for many
 years a resident of New York city, pre-
 sents Washington in half-muitary cos
 tune, the coat carelessly fastened atth'
 middle button, and sloping back upoIr
 the thighs in graceful lines. The lei :. foot is advanced, and the left kne'
 slightly bent. The right hand is opei
 and extended, while tie left rests upol
 the pommel of his sword, whose poin
 bites the ground little behind the lei
 heel. The countenance is mild, an'
 the marks of action are very slight; bu
 the conception is picturesque and pleas | inp