The Black range. (Robinson, Socorro County, N.M.) 1882-1897, 1884-08-22
A Genius Of the Jack Knife.

received vigorous Impulse OF late. ow-
ing TO the aesthetic craze that replaces
the stove with the open crate. and
tabooes maniels of slate and marble.
substituting instead the product Of our
native forests. handsomely or uglily
craven as the ease may be. Economy
cannot be claimed therefor. since gro
tesque carvings. nnheard Of pillars
and pilasiers. hideous heads. meaning
less emblems. and geological distor-
sions are made TO meet the require
ments of the longest purse; their only
utility. so far AS discovered. being
counter-irritants 10 the placidity of
the housewife. aud trap for the re-
ception of dust and DIRT.
Wood carving. however. can be made
both beautiful and ornamental; and i
was recently delighted by AN examin-
alton of host Of such. not one Of
which was from the hand of the pro-
fessional artist. but the product OF an
Illiterate cripple. whose only tool. aside
from a carpenters saw. Is single.
bladed pocket knife.
"Whittling William" for such Is the
pseudonym bestowed upon him by his
neighbors. was introduced to my notice
while sojourning in the little village OF
Kirkwood. twelve miles out of St.
Louis, Mo. The accounts had pre-
viously received Of the man, coupled
with the exhibition of specimens of
his work IN the way OF busts Of Sir
Walter Scott, Napoleon the Great. Lord
Byron. etc. further whetted my curl.
osity, and accordingly made IL in my
way TO visit the little old church Oc-
cupied by him as u workshop aud
domicle.
Here perfect wilderness of od-
dities met my eye, the walls and
shelves being covered with an incon-
gru0us assortment of curiosities. from
chains. frames, statuettes, miniature
copies of mechanics tools, carved
frames. baskets. boats. canoes, steam
and sailing crafts, ARCHITECTURAL designs,
flutes, toy houses aud furniture, ami
mails. birds. and a cuckoo clock. TO
models of various forms of machinery,
including stationary. locomotive, and
marine engines. looms, threshing ma
chimes, etc. and though all were In
wood, they were apparently complete.
even to the most minute details. Even
flowers and leaves were In some cases
initiated with scrupulous fidelity, and
after viewing a carved tree branch,
with nest and eggs of a thrust, with
the parent bird close by. l could readily
believe that no undertaking was too
difficult or too chimerical for this
genius to undertake; though he sub
sequently acknowledged the "scroll
work was long the great bother" of his
life.
Rather prone to retieence. and with
al somewhat shy and modest, IL was
with some difficulty that | succeeded
in obtaining Mr.. Yoe's history, which
after all proved uneventful enough,
even quite commonplace. Born in the
city of st. Lous. he was early appren-
ticed TO a mlllwright, from whom he
ran away. forfeiting his indentures,
while in his teens. With the breaking
out of the civil war he entered the
army, from which he was dis 'harged
after the lapse Of eighteen months.
having suffered amputation of his
right foot as the sequal to a gunshot
wound. Though always considered
"handy" with the knife. it was not un
til his twenty-third year that he be-
came fully aware of his peculiar tai
ent, which was then brought out in the
construction of dolls house under
taken to please a young sister. This
excited 80 much praise and admiration
that he at last conceived the project OF
turning it to profit, and accordingly
adopted his present occupation. which,
he assures me. is fairly remunerative.
His first assays were Of rather low
order. consisting. for the most part, of
walking sticks. chains,puzzles, and nom
descripts put together IN narrow neck
bottles so as to fully occupy the in
terior-feats by no means uncommon
among the rural youth of New Eng
land. Later. on viewing a so.called
model OF "Bingen Castle" he was seiz-
ed with desire to duplicate It, which
he accomplished successfully, includ-
ing Its six hundred windows and doors
and many odd shaped towers and tur-
rets. For this piece of work he realiz-
ed the muniicent sum Of s20.
His next feat was model, four feet
long, of the celebrated Bristol. of the
Narragansett line of Sound steamers,
his only guide being one of Endicott's
colored autographs; and in this he was
so far successful rs TO find purchaser
as soon as completed in the person of
geutIemau from Texas.