The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1894-01-26
HE CAN DRAW HORSES.
AN INTERESTING CHAT WfIH NM
FREDERICK REMINGTON.
He Lives an Active. Out Door Life-How
He Obtains Material for His Brush
His Future Hopes.

Inc dutieS thdt nave been Wilttt"
about Frederick Remington are many and
varied, though he has not been in the
fell more than five years. But ne has
not been very truly represented. His
personality has been deined. and Of all
men, Frederick Remington is not Of the
deified sort He is a man among men, "a
deuce Of a good fellow" he never drew
but two women in his life, ana they were
failures. while his greatest hope is a war
in Europe II he were OF the deifled sort
he would not know how to draw horses.
cowboys and Indians. He has made his
immense success because he knows the
life which he depicts, knows a horse from
the prick Of his ears to the frogs Of his
| feet. knows what riding IS from Tour
| solid years In the saddle. knows what
/ Indians are from two Indian c3mpaiSns-
one among the Apaches
Air. Remington is not much over thlr-
ty. and has seen life IN a good many
| phases; but for the past three years ne
| has occupied a quiet little brown-painted
stone house on Webster avenue in New
Rochelle. a small town. sixteen miles
! north Of New York city. There is plenty
| Of land out there and he can keep horses,
without which he would be lost. In the
summer time his surroundings here are
| most beautiful. The grounds about his
house and the neighboring houses are eX-
| cellently kept. ample though they are,
and well provided with trees, and. Of
course there is good riding and driving
for miles around His house is a steep
rooted. gabled cottage, rOomy inside and
| easy TO get about I'm. The kitchen is al
most the only room that does not stand
| inviungly open and contain the scattered
traces of the artists craft. Upstairs i'm
| one gable is the room where he paints in
oils About the room are numerous sad
| dies Of various varieties. many OF which
look oddly familiar TO an old habitue or
| the western plains: and on a little plat
form is a wooden horse used for posing
models Everything is scattered about
| the room prOmiscuOusly. Here is inlsh-
| ed painting of troop of horses In long
| rank: on the easel is yet unfinished
| painting of a Virginia rider. Another In
ished painting is resting group OF In
dams and horses. looking over the plains
| away 10 the distance. He says he tried
that a number Of time, but IT dldn SUIT
| him lie posed this way and that way,
and another. But at last the right atu-
| tudcs were discovered and IN few hours
| the work was finished
But much of his Illustration Is zone
down i'm his study-it looks more like
| study than a studio-whcre ne has desk
and books. though the walls are hung
with specimens Of Indians garments and
other relies. This room stands open. like
all the other rooms on the lower hoor'
and just i'm front of 81 is little reception
room filed with pictures sketches. proofs,
paintings. water c0lOrs-what not ! do
not know. Here IL IS that one sees /.
portfolio Of proofs which laid fiat, sheet
upon sheet. make a pile six inches high.
and Mr.. Remington will tell you that
these are only about half his work done
in little over half dozen years.
If you so 10 see him you VIII find
big, thick. smooth-faced man (who was
on Walter Camps original football
team. lie may be dressed in old clothes
suited to working out Of doors. for he
cannot stay inside after 3 o'clock. Com
monty he rides for an hour or two. but
he Is a man TO take excellent care of
his horses. and not leave it ali TO his
outside man. either. When he has taken
you inside he provides YOU with a first
rate cigar. and asks you il you will
have drink of his fine old Scotch whis-
Ky Ca luxury he spends little money
on now and then, though he says he
| can't afford it, and gives you a COM
Portable seat in his attractive little parlor
Some OF his own finest work. both orig
inal and engraved. hangs on the wall side
! by side with work Of various Of his
friends one certainly will not forget
drawing of Dana Gibson's a fashionable
! young lady sitting on "A divan. while in
| the background are dim suggestions OF
| the ballroom. like fancies passing through
| her mind There are fancy Indian pipes
| lying or the tables. and old Mexican
vases. Furthermore. the room, like all
the rest of the house. is in the most
| 81 noHIf gHaViurr the
handiwork and good judgment OF the
dainty and unusually interesting little
woman known as Mrs. Remington. She
evidently let's the man OF the house do
as he plcases. but keeps him in excellent
order.
When at last we were settled down for
a talk on the day / called. Mr.. Remington
told me his story briefly.
lie was born In Canton, Lawrence coun-
| ~ n. Y. in a small village, where
| he was rather a lively youngster, fond OF
father was q newspaper man. and wanted
! him 10 follow the same profession But
| when he showed a leaning toward art
the older man offered no objection, as the
| case usually is and when the young man
was about eiGhteen-that was IN l6i5-9-
| he sent him 10 the Yale University Art
| School He made pretense Of working
| mere ut Il year anu II idlis iuA Nv tANiiiiAE
himself that he found out more about
football than he did about the princi-
pies of fine art. As / have said, he was
"A member of Walter Camps original foot
ball team. At that time Walter Camp
was practically inventing the American
game, and Mr.. Remington assisted him
practically In his experiments. He took
part I'm other athletic sports as well
After drawing from the antique ana
gaining some little skill with the pencil
young Remington gave up this study ana
went TO Albany as the confidential clerk
Of Governor Cornell Things were TOO
slow for him. and. finally. air things con-
sidered, ii seemed decidedly best-in TACT
the only thing 10 do-to go West.
Accordingly. a few weeks later found
Frederick Remington punching cows IN
Montana.
punching COWS" In Montana may not
seen to have much TO do with history
of his artistic career: but. in fact II has
everything 10 do with IL. He had not
lived four years in the saddle. as bona
Tide cowboy he would never have to-day
the intimate knowledge Of horses that IS
the secret OF his wonderful success. nor
would he know what COWS are. and In
dams. and the men who rough 1t.
From here he went 10 Kansas ana
| etortad q mule ranch He made money