The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-12-31
STATUES AND MONUMENTS.
Artistic Difficulty of Making Com
mOn-pIace Persons and Convcn-
tionHl Costumes Look Imposing.


tionaI Costumes Look Imposing.
From the London Globe
The passion for statues of deceased
worthless could be understood if the
human figure. in conventional attire,
were in any sense an ornament to pub
lie streets or TO public buildings. There
is something peculiarly forlorn about
modern statue. There he stands,
fcrsaken and forgotten People make
appointments at his pedestal without
knowing more than his name; the ON
nibuses and cabs roll by; sometimes
the drizzling, disheartening rain falls,
and the bare-headed person gazes pit
eously into the thick, murky atmos-
phere. while the shop girl under a
macintosh and an umbrella is a more
imposing figure. Yet certain proVin-
cial municipalities are exercised to pro-
vide statues at every corner of their
squares, to honor their citizens by
placing them where in life they were
wont to assemble. but in a costume
which in life they would have scorned
to wear
Conventional attire never manifests
its shortcomings so clearly as i'm
bronze. The trousers fit: they do not
bag at the knees. Obviously the coat
does not crease at the shoulders, and
the buttons of the waistcoat-even if
the bestatued be a bachelor-are in
strictly proper array. The collar and
tie have a correct looseness such as
the original could not have tied had
he spent week at the task, and the
boots are perfectly heeled Hence
arises the degree of Doctor of Civil
Law. for this gives the worthy an OPP
portunity of approaching classic dis
t!nction, in dress at least. He holds
his cap in his hand, close to his bos-
om he stands proud and erect the
hand falls gracefully over his shoul-
ders, and above all. the merely con-
Nentional attire is hidden 1t might be
proposed that all persons, doomed to
he statued. should be carven as robed
IN cape macintosh, if they had not
a right to Doctors degree That
would meet two difficulties. 1t would
obviously be more ornamental on a
fine day, while on a wet day it would
be suitability itself.
There is, of course. the equestrian
compromise. Here so to speak. the
etiigy assumes a relative insignificance
when compared with the horse on
which he is seated. That might, in or
binary circumstances. Undue him with
a sweet and chaste humility. Unluckily.
1t happens that once the figure of a HUI
man being is placed a-stride Tor even
aside horse, an unaCcountably super
cilious vanity lights on the features
and settles there. 1t is no little COM
pliment to our English sculptors to say
that they succeed uniformly in portray
ing this vanity. so that one wonders If
the exalted person were TO bestride an
animal of less docile disposition. would
he be quite so self-possessed. Be that
as 1t may. IL is quite beyond dispute
IL we aver that equestrian statues owe
their dignity not to the man. but to the
horse, Notwithstanding that the intent
is to do honor TO the human rather
than the brute. There is a grievance
here. Why should not the. name of the
horse be quoted on the pedestal? A
happier combination-and more
equitablt arrangement-migh be pro-
duced If famous horse could be chos-
en- to partner a famous man. For ex-
ample, statue Of well-known poll
tician could be combined with Bend
Or, and an archbishop could be put
astraddle Robert the Devil.
Then there is the bust Busts are
usually put indoors because the UNI
happy person, having no legs. cannot
walk They depict intellectual persons.
of course, and their only value i'm this
respect is as regards their heads A
bust of a prizefighter would be absurd.
since arms make the man. equally so
a bust of learned doctor would de-
nude him of his greatest charm. his
gown. A bust of a prince would rob
the public OF the study of uncomfort-
able raiment. and the study OF high
spirited horse in repose. a bust of an
orator robs US Of that precious scroll !
the last thing a reasonably good ora
tor would have. Busts are a public
declaration OF the originals scorn for