The sun., 1897-03-08
STORIES OF DEATH MASKS.
ONE THAT PRINCETON GETS sTOLEN
FROM TRINITY COLLEGE, DUBLIN.


Duplicate Of Their Isaac Ne~ten-asi.
| Coieridge Identined By the Family Far.
Everybody interested in such things knows
| OF the collection Of death masks which Laurence
Hutton, editor OF Harper's Magazine, has spent
the better part OF forty yearp In getting together.
The collection is the largest and finest In tho
world, and tho only one, In fact, that may be
dignined by the term collection.
| II has been kept in Mr.. Hutton's study, on the
second floor OF his residence, 229 West Thirty
fourth street, and among these portraits In
! plaster" OF famous men Of this and other coun-
tries Mr.. Hutton has lived and worked for over
| quarter Of a century. Knowing this, his friends
we're surprised yesterday to read in the papers
that he had given the entire collection to Prince
ton University. They wondered why.
"You see, IL was this way" Mr.. Hutton
| said yesterday to Sun reporter: They have
had me down at Princeton good deal to talk
books and literature and such like TO the boys
down there. Not long ago was Informed that
the Board OF Trustees, at its last meeting, had
voted to confer upon me the degree OF Master Of
Arts at tho commencement According % my
notion, that mado mo Princeton man, gavo
mo the right to wear Princeton coors and yell
tho Princeton yell, and thought I'd Like TO do
something for the university. When was down
there a whilo ago somebody asked me what
was going to do with my collection. wanted
| tho room II took up In my study. and 80 said
| that would give 1t to Princeton, provided
room In tho new library set aside for 1t.
| The room was readily obtained, and when it's
ready the collection will go down there"
Although much has been written about this
collection OF death masks, the story OF how many
| OF the masks came into Mr.. Huttons possession
has mover been told. There arc between sixty
and seventy Of tho masks. and each has Its
story. Tho collection of these stories would nll
| q volume In the collection are the masks OF
bapei b19H Webster. ES"E queen EliHaSeth, Dean swi,
Coleridse. Laurence Stcrnc, Keats, Prof. Rich
baS bhfsS SSSrdsp jsSn %6aJss IF sfo
S SsErs,t: Many Queen = ssot. MsR5y clay, JsSs
oliver Cromwell. Aaron Burr. Edmund .Kean.
David Garriek, Frederick, the Great, Robes
sohn. Haydn, Wordsworth, Charles IL, Mayo.
| leon III, Goethe, Luther, Dante, Franklin, Ed
Tasso, % Mrs. scott SCOT sddons, Louise OF Prussia,
| Schiller. Curran, Count Cavour, Disraeli, Tom
Mr.. Hutton became interested in death masks
early In the sixties. when ho was clerk In
New York store. One afternoon he left the store
in a shop further uptown to buy a certain book
for his employer. AS he was paying for tho
book boy came into the shop with death
mask In his hand. Stepping up to the proprie-
tor. who was waiting upon young Hutton, the
Hsay, Boss. is this. worth anythingi Give mo
Hutton saw the mask and exclaimed:
:" That's mask OF Benjamin Franklin, and
Well said the shopkecpor TO Hutton. ~
thSt S TO me- and MSrH tsSS SO saying he gave
the boy the money and took the mask, Az tho
"oh, over in second street, near Second av-
enue. Ia an ash barrel. There's plenty more up
Tho next afternoon. when Hutton got through
work, he went up into Second street near second
avenue, and went from house TO house until ho
found the house where the masks had been. The
woman OF tho house, in answer to the young
! YES, there was a lot OF those masks down In
the cellar; been kicking around there for years.
cleaning the cellar the other day ordered the
| horrible things thrown into the ash barrel. The
5Sanf sSs Of I
| Hutton found another mask OF Franklin, one OF
Wordsworth, one OF scott. and one OF Cromwell.
and casts from the skulls OF Robert Bruce las
supposed and Robert Burns. With these Mr..
Hntton's collection was begun.
! The mask OF Dean Swift is the only ono In eN-
| istence. II was originally the property OF Trim.
| ny College, Dublin. From the library OF the
ward was offered Tor It's return, but nothing was
eyer heard oil the mask; few years ago Mr..
Hutton was rummaging In an old curiosity shop
! in London and he came across mask OF swift
| under pile of rubbish. Picking it up he asked
the shopkeeper IL he knew who that was sup
posed TO DO. The shopkeepcr said that he did
not. that no didn't even know how he had got II.
We'll" said Mr.. Hutton. what will you take
=" on. anything you want to give; say shil-
ling, ~. u,,,ou. ror,v ns
| the mask passed into his possession. 80 when
the collection is formally turned over TO Prince
| erty that rightlully belongs 10 Trinity. Dublin.
II y absolutely certain that TIE mask Is OF
graphs and in other ways
Writers on the subject have furnished undis.
puted proof that only one mask Of swift was ever
] made and. therefore, MIR. Hut ttDn feels that
/ his 10 the long-lost mask. When this becomes
generally known 1t viii be Interesting TO know
| IL the Irish university authorities Will make
any attempt to get back It's property.
Some question has been raised as to the genu
| Hutton has consulted every authority ho could
tnd on the subject. Bruce died just outside the
directed before his death. that II ho did not live
| TO reach Palestine he wanted his heart carried
there Whsp r.. y ssS ve
, that cast might be made from bis skull, II was
found that several ribs on the left side OF tho
body over the heart were missing, and that was
as an ID o, as SOay Of
Sass ondon tHs %Sen aesosa
Se Ss % sGsR
curator and asked him from what mask the
From the mask Of Sir Isaac Newton" an
swered the curator promptly. but where did
ut was taken from mask have in my homo
in New York" answered Mr. Hutton,
Taken from mask you ownl" exclaimed the
curator. Il think you must be mistaken; There is
only one. and that is the property OF the Royal
| Society. May l ask who you are T.
Mr.. Hutton furnished AN identification OF him.
| self, and then the curator informed him that the
! society was then In session, and asked him to 20
! before IL and tell the story OF his mask. Mr..
/ Hutton did 30. He showed the photograph,
! which all conceded to DO photograph OF New
toms mask, but he refused TO tell how the mask
came into his possession. The Royal Society
| men tried for a long time TO solve what was 10
| them mystery, and perhaps they are working
| at the solution yet. II may not be violating a
| confidence to ehlightcn them.
| The man who made tho mask that Is now In
| tho rooms OF the Royal Society made two masks
! instead OF one. On his death his business was
! left to his son, and there was clause in the old
mans will, calling attention to the fact that
| among the tCstatOr's effects would be found u
| death mask OF Sir Isaac Newton, and that II was
mate to the one in the rooms OF the Royal So
| ciGty.
! The son still carries on the business in Lon
| don, and 1t was from him that Mr.. Hutton pur
| chased tho mask. 1t Is considered the most
valuable mask III the collection. Mr.. Hutton
secured II about twenty years ago.
Several years ago Mr.. and Mrs. Hutton were
| In Rome, IL was In the carly spring, and early
| one evening they were driving from their botol