The daily Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1878-1???, 1882-01-21
Lincoln Sits for a Life Mask.


CAS- told by the sculptor Volk in The
Century for December.)
''He was there promptly; indeed, he
never failed to be on time. My studio
was in the fifth story, and there were no
elevators in those days, and soon learn
ed to distinguish his step on the stairs,
and am sure he frequently came up two
if not three steps at q stride. When he
sat down the first time in that hard,
wooden, low-armed chair, which | still
possess, and which has been occupied
by Douglas, Seward, and Generals Grant
and Dix, he said:
"Mr Volk, | have never sat before to
sculptor or painter-only for daguereo-
types and photographs. What shall /
doP'
told him that / would only take the
measurements Of his head and shoulders
that time, and next morning. Saturday,
| would make cast Of his face, which
would save him number of sittings
He stood up against the wall, and made
mark above his head, and then meas
ured up to it from the floor, and said:
"'You are just twelve inches taller
than Judge Douglas--th that is, just six
feet one inch
Before commencing the cast next
morning, and knowing Mr.. Lincoln's
fondness for story, told him one, in
order to remove what l thought an ap>
prehensive expression las though he
feared the operation might be danger
ous and this is the story;
III occasionally employeda little black
eyed, black-haired, and dark-skinned
Italian as a tormatore in plaster work,
who had related to me short time be-
fore that himself and comrade image
vender were doing Switzerland by
hawking their images. One day aSwiss
gentleman asked him If he could make
his likeness in plaster 30, yes, signor;
/ am sculptor. So Matteo Mattel
such was the name Of the pretender--
got some plaster, laid the big Swissgen-.s
tleman on his back, stuck quill in each Z
nostril for him to breathe through, and
requested him TO close his eyes Then
Mat, as ] called him, poured the soft
plaster all over his face and forehead;
then he paused for reflection; as the
plaster was beginning to set he became
frightened, as he had never before un-
dertaken such job and had neglected
to prepare the face properly, especially
the gentleman's huge beard, mustache,
and the hair about the temples andfore-
head, through which, of course, the
plaster had run and become solid.
Mat made an excuse to 60 outside
the door; them said he, | run like
-
II saw Mr.. Lincoln's eyes twinkle
with mirth.
How did he get it ohP' said he.
81 answered that probably, after rea-
sonable waiting for the Scultore, he had
to break it off, and cut and pull out all
the hair which the tenacious plaster
touched, the best way he could. Mat
said he took special pains to avoid that
particular part of Switzerland after that
artistic experience. But his companion,
who somewhat resembled him, not
knowing anything Of his partners per-
Torrance, was soon after overhauled by
the gentleman and nearly cudgelled to
death
Upon hearing this, the tears actually
trickled down Mr. Lincoln's bronzed
cheeks, and he was at once in the best
of humors. He sat naturally in the chair
when made the cast, and saw every
move made in q mirror opposite, as I
put the plaster on without interference
with his eyesight or his free breathing
through the nostrils, II was about an
hour before the mold was ready to be
removed, and being all in one piece,
with both ears perfectly taken, it chung
pretty hard, as the cheek-bones were
higher than the jaws at the lobe of the
ear. He bent his heat low and took
hold Of the mold and gradually worked
it off without breaking or injury; ithurt
a little as few of the hairs of the tend
er temples pulled out with the plaster
and made bis eyes water; but the re-
membrance of the poor Swiss gentle
man evidently kept him in good
mood"