The morning call., 1892-11-14
KNOWS How TO CUT WE'LL.
Major Forbes and His Knife
in Art Work.
A MANIA FOR CARVING.
What Trouble It Caused the Champion When a
Bty-At Times He Ctuld Not Sit
Down.
MANIA FOR CARVING

Amarvel in the way of whittier is Major
L. M. Forbes of Larkin street, near Suffer.
With an ord mary knife 1t is doubtful II he
has living equal.
His place is decorated from one end 10
another with beautiful specimens of his
handiwork cut from wood with the aid only
of a penknife.
Although he is new about 90 years Of age
his hand has lost none of its cunning and in
his leisure moments he INDUCES in his pas
sion for whiting.
The major developed his talent and ac-
ouired his skill while in the army during the
late war.
He was a member of tie Seventh Ohio
Regiment and those who are familiar with
its record know that he had to do other
things besides cutting sticks.
Among his collection are five walking
canes which are enriosites In themselves.
They represent as many different orders by
the designs wrought upon them. He shows
an Oregon maple tree which is honey
combed In manner that no japanese
carver would ever dream of. Inside the
body of the tree and the extended six
branches there are seventy-hve balls cut,
all of which are movable, and the marvel is
how an ordinary knife was worked TO
fashion them. On this same tree he has
worked a cOffee-pOt, teapot, spoon, wine
cup. goblet and several tumblers. The
patience and accuracy of the major Is noted
| by the fact that all the work on the tree
required just 1000 cuts.
How Go you know, maior" was in
| quired.
"Why, sir" he replied" because counted
| them. l never make useless cut. Every
| one tells, even if I'm fighting an enemy.
SIR"
This last was so emphatic that 1t was IN
| pleasant and produced a mild, congestive
| chill.
Look here" he resumed. there is another
maple tree just fifteen feet high You will
| observe that there are 257 fans cut on the
| body ana carved with links so as to fold up.
That work required 1000 cuts"
Another maple about five feet high had
| nirety-four fans cut upon ii.
The champion belt. made by himself, Is
| an intricate and valuable piece of work.
| 1t is carved of hard wood, with forty raised
stars and twenty-six double chain links. 1t
| has gold pieces set in in from the size of a
| 50 80 piece TO $50 piece, amounting to $40.
! A monument two and a half feet high is a
| puzzle. Within there are thirty-six balls,
many OF which have balls cut within them.
| Not one of these balls could be extracted
| without breaking the monument. Another
monument has sixty-hve fans cut on The
| outside.
a chain Of Oregon pine. first growth. was
| stretched around the large apartment. 1t
was 5512 feet long. and was a careful piece
| OF Work, as hundredS OF designs were
| wrought upon the links
| But the browning glory was a huge chain
| that reached all around the room. The
major anticipated an inquiry, as he re-
marked:
THAT was little job That was from
an Oregon FIR. which measured 179 feet in
length. 1t is composed OF single links,
| double links, anchor swivels. and swivels
with balls cut inside Of balls. There were
444 knots to cut through and 1t contains
over 2G00 links. 1t is carved inside and out
| with diamond, square and groove cuts"
You did not complete that job in six
| DAYS. did you?
mo Stree. That carried me over n
period Of three years, doing the work. OF
course, at odd times"
Then were shown some specimens of the
animal creation. There were monkeys
| wrought from wood that would stand off
any OF the natural species, and parrots that
looked as If they could swear in right good
English. Throwing open sort of show
case there were exhibited a score Of hideous-
looking rattlesnakes. which seemed to be
ready 10 bite and would have thrown con-
yaleseent drunk into jim-tams. Hldeous
heads and all kinds of figures, carved with
an apparent knowledge OF anatomy. were
on every hand.
| "Major. wbittlers are pronounced nuis-
ances generally. Were you thus afflicted
! when boy 2" queried his guest.
This made him roar.
why, sometimes now can't sit down
| for a week"
''HoN's that?"
Thinking of oovhood and mother-and
| father. too; he wasn'ttsl0w. They used to
| take all my knives away from me and then
tan me until couldn't wear trousers. Oh, |
couldn't help il. j carved a monkey on the
| headboard of my fathers bed when l was
II years old. 1t scared the old gent nearly
TO death, but he made me see monkeys for
six months afterward. No, l couldn't sleep
with boy in the nelgbborhood without or
nameDting some OF the furniture or some
part of the house before [ left"
why don't you place these things on
| public exhibition, major?"
Don't want TO. Made them for my own
| amusement. However, will give any fell
low that champion belt who can beat me
with a knife. That has been open for
years, but no one APPEARED TO know any
thing about it.
'How many specimens have you here?"
A catalogue was produced showing over
1000 and establishing the fact that the
major was and is the greatest whittier on
earth