Oxford eagle. (Oxford, Lafayette Co., Miss.) 1876-current, 1903-10-01
Colossal Statue in Cotton.


and artistic feature at the louisiana
Purchase Exposition. A colossal
statue of King Cotton will be the
most striking feature of the States
exhibit in the Palace of Agriculture
at the Worlds Fair in st. Louis. 1t
will be the largest statue in the Ex-
position, and will tower so feet
above the heads of visitors. His
majesty will be seated on az
mense throne, and if the bres
life were to animate the gigantic
frame. and he were TO arise to his
feet, he would be compelled to stoop
TO prevent his head striking the raf
ters of the great building, the cor
nice line of which is 65 feet above
the foundation.
I No modern monarch possesses a
sufficiently dignified appearance, say
the Mississippians in charge of the
feature, to adequately represent SO
important a subject as their great
Southern States cotton crop, so Mr..
r. H. Henry, the director of exhlb-
its, caused the artist to choose for
his subject a venerable king Of the
sixteenth century.
King Cotton's face, hands and feet
will be of wax, and cotton will form
the remainder of his makeup. A
space so feet square has been allot-
ted by the Exposition management
as King Cotton's domain. His will
be an exclusive monarchy, and no
passports will be honored. A strong
railing will define the boundaries of
his kingdom, and the Jefferson
Guards will prevent trespassing. All
visitors may see the king and pay
homage, but they may not tread on
his domain, nor pick him, or his
subjects or his kingdom to pieces for
souvenirs.
His majesty will sit with dignified
mien on a great throne, completely
covered with raw cotton, as white as
snow. The throne will rest on ped
estal six feet high, built entirely of
cotton bales. The draperies about
the throne will be made from lint
from the cotton gin, dazzling in
whiteness. and as fine in texture as a
spiders web. His crown and scep-
Ter will be of cotton, and his limbs
and body will be of the same mate
rial. The entire kingdom will be
covered with a carpet made of pure
white cotton. Real cotton plants
will be installed and characteristic
group of statuary will occupy a
space before the throne. This
group will consist of family of ne
groes picking cotton-the father,
mother, son and daughter, and lit
tie pickaninny, too small to toll, will
lie on his back on the downy carpet
just as he does on his native heath
in the Sunny South. These figures
will be life size, and, like every
thing else in King Cotton's domain,
will be made of Mississippi's most
staple product-except their heads,
hands and feet. These, like his
majesty's, will be fashioned in wax.
This King Cotton feature of Mis-
sissippi's exhibit is an artistic crea-
tion by a leading Mexican wax
worker, and was designed mainly to
attract attention to the States dis
play. In the universal cotton ex-
hibit, under the same roof, the State
commission will install other exhib-
its of absorbing interest. A practi-
cal cotton gin will be in operation,
looms will be working and cotton in
all its phases will be shown. Ma
chinery will be in motion and cot
ton will be put through all pro-
cesses and converted into fabrics in
plain view of visitors.