The DeSmet leader. (DeSmet, Kingsbury Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1886-11-06
A CAST OF LINCOLN.
A CHAT WITH SCULPTOR vOLK
ABOUT HOW 1T WAS MADE.


| The Face Represented as Smoothly
Shaven--iIow the Mold Was Taken
Bronze Cast of Lincoin's Right Hand
Pictures of the Martyred President.
| saw the other day bronze caste from
| the Lincoln Ii . mask which the sculptor,
| Nolk, took during tho April In 1860 before
| Lincoln was nominated. The casts have
| just Lcen made, and one will probably be
! given To tho government Cnly limited
! number OF these casts havc been made, and
the one l saw was in the hands OF one OF
| Mr. Lincon's most intimate and dearest
| friends Ii represents with a wonderful
| realty tho features and spirit OF the great
president The face, front OF the head, the
ears, ami snowy neck are there Just az they
~ess- when i.incoln was alive In 1850 the
| president wore no beard, and the face Il
represented as smoothly shaven There are
| two little molos on each sido OF the nose,
| and 1t seems 10 me that the lines OF thought
| and worry are not deeply cut as in his
| later portraits The sculptor, Volk, got
| this cast in measure by accident. he was
| in Illinois with stephen A.. Douglas, making
| statue OF him, when he first met Abra-
| ham Lincoln At this time the senatorial
| contest between Lincoln and Douglas was
| going on, and Douglas in the popular mind
stood far above Lincoln. Lincoln did not
become much Of presidential possibility
until 1860, and at this time it would have
been hard to have gotten bets upon his
nomination.
HOW THE CAST WAS MADE.
II was In April, 1850, when Lincoln wns
trying n case in Chicago that Volk got him
20 sit for him, and at this time, two months
before he was nominated, he took this life
mask. A mask Of this kind, you know, 10
taken by putting a lot OF plaster of paris
on tho face so that it covers IL entirely. 10
is then allowed to harden, and when taken
of it gives an exact mask OF the face.
Volk was very careful, In putting the plas-
ter on Lincoln, to leave bis nose and nostrils
free. He left il ON about an hour, and
then pulled it oil slowly and easily, tearing
at tho same time some of the iine hairs OF
the temple, which made Lincoln's eyeS
water He then got Lincoln to sit TOR him
and took a sketch OF him i'm clay. What .
sculptor calls ske,ching is modelling q statue
in the first place in clay, or some material
just for the time Lincoln came and sent
for Mr.. Nolk to sketch him. and this cast,
which is the result Is undoubtedly the Lest
ever made.
One of the casts will, / understand, be
given to the government and be put In the
National museum / saw also the bronze o
cast Of Lincoln's right hand, which Voik
made at the same time 1t Is an immense
bony fist, tightly clasped around bragen
stick, ard cut Off about the middle Of the
wrist. yolk took the model Of this hand
on Sunday, and he had trouble In getting
some Lind Of a stick or piece OF paste-
board for Lincoln to hold while he took IL.
Linz oln went out to the woodshed and
sawed off piece of broomsticS and it
IL this piece of broomhandle which 10 now
modelled in brass
PICTURES OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN.
, President Lincoln told Volk that he had
never sat to a sculptor besore, and the only
things that have been taken OF him were
daguerreotypes and photographs Judge
Kelley, of Pennsyl lvania, who Is one OF Liil-
coins greatest admirers, has . photogrsph
of him taken in 1887, l think. II was or
iginaly daguerreotype, but Kelley has
had this dazuerreotype photographed, aud
il is certainly very fine likeness
Judge Kelley thinks there have been only
! two greatest men In tho world One o.
these was Lincoln, and tho other Shakes
peare, and he thinks that they Were much
alike in genius In his pleasant room at tho
Riggs house he has upon the wall large
photographs Of four or five great states
men, and he Is now having large photo
graph Of one OF the celebrated pictures Of
Lincoln made to complete his collection.
Ono Of these pictures Is OF Edwin M. STAN
ton, another OF Carey, the great protec-
zionist, and third Of Mr. Kelley himself.
In an old antiquarian shop at Georgetown
the other day found -whiskered,
white-haired, rei-faced .eweler who showed
me q cameo Of President Lincoln which
represents him very we'll indeed Itwas q
white shell cameo, and the man told nle
that he had gotten it through Mrx Lincoln,
, and that Charlie Sumner had offered him
500 for it, but that he had refused it, IL h
not set, and IL represents Lincoln without q
beard. Washington Cor. Cleveland Leader.