New-York tribune., 1908-07-05

was made to present q most ludicrous figure, ana
held his sword at angle which was joke 10
every swordsman who saw 1t.
The park commissioners hesitated to put such an
unsightly statue in the beautiful park, but after
consultation with other officials it was decided
that out of courtesy to Venezuela, room must be
found for It. The park commissioners were crafty
enough, however to relegate it TO the knoll near
SD street, which, In those days. was even more
obscure and forIorn spot than it is to-day
For a long time the equestrian statue of Bolivar
stood there criticised and scorned by all who saw
it. 1t is said that ingenious nursemaids used to
take youthful charges to the statue and scare
them into obedience by pointing to the vast dis
tended jaws of the ferocious looking steed
One day made the discovery that the
Iiherator's appraised sword big that IT
would have been q physical impossibty TO replace
it in its scabbard
After that the criticisms of the fgure in the
park grew to such extent that they at length
reached the of President Crespo of Venezuela
He was chagrned and humated ana determined
that this offending statue must be removed at once
and a fitting and irreproachable monument to his
great countryman put in its place
He sent for Giovanni Turini. New York sculptor,
and commissioned him to begin work on new
statue of Bolivar horseback at a cost of $25oVo
AT the State Department at Washington is a let
ter on file written by the Venezuelan Minister to
Richard Olney Secretary of State, reading:
Il am requested to say that the government OF
Venezuela realizes fact that the present statue
of Bolivar in Central Park, New York, is one not
at all appropriate to the glory of the great Lib
eraor and 1t is intention of the government 10
renlace il with a more suitable figure
But alas, this promise not fulfilled. although
not through any fault of our sister republic
Turini began work industriously on his new SUD-
iect in his studio on Staten Island. When-it was
finished he felt proud of his work. The Garibaldi
statue in Washington Square, is an evidence OF
his art hut nevertheless when the National Sculpt-
rre Society viewed his work, at the request OF the
Venezuelan government, In August 1881, II con-
demned it as inartistc- 1t declared that 1t was a
great Improvement the original statue, Dul
nevertheless not quite good enough.
rurini offe.ed to prove that his work was artistic
He accused the National Sculpture Society Oh pc
ing a trust determined to condemn the work OF
all sculptors outside of its organization. For TWO
wears he fought desperately with the society, but
without avail and then he died. His friends salo
his death was due TO broken heart
And now the huge Bolivar on horseback Whlch
he designed rests and corrodes neglected in the
wards of a Long Island bronze works, ana Venez-
uela has made no further attempt TO give America
a bronze Bolivar.
Meanwhile Park Commissioner Smith would very
much like to know what to do with the stone
,,edestal that stands on the SD street knoll, ana
which in its present condition is even more In
artistic and an insult to the memory OF the great
Iiberator than either of the two discarded hgures-