Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1912-06-27

unQUestionabIy made the promise -
coseIy. but the story was taken seri-
ously and the Missouri representative
had hard work trying TO put the yarn
on its right basis. It kept appearing
and reappearing head foremost and
finally the speaker gave it up.
Could Teach Him to Drive Mules.
The messenger who has been at
tached to the speakers room in the
capitol for a long time is a c0Iored
man named NeiU He held his posi-
ton through successive speakerships
from the day OF Samuel J. Randall OF
Pennsylvania One day after the con
gressiOnaI elections which returned a
Democratic majority to the house Of
representatives Neil net in the cor
ridor RepreseL+ alive BUrleson Of Tex
as. Mr.. BuTIesOn and Mr.. Clark we're
and are close friends, although today
the Texan is supporting an opponent
Of Mr. Clark for the presidential nom
nation EeiII said:
Good morning, Mr. BuTIeson.
hear Mr., Champ Clark is going to
drive a pair Of Missouri mules down
Pennsylvania avenue when he IS elect.
ed speaker. Is that true, Mr.. Burle-
SOM"
well, Neill," said Mr.. Burleson,
"Mr. Clark is a man Of his word, and
if he was going to drive the mules you
may be sure that he will"
Il don't just like to tell Mr.. Clark
so myself, Mr.. Burleson, but would
you mind telling him that if he
Is going to drive any mules there amt
nobody in Washington can teach him
how better than me?"
Rssfeson duly reported the facts in
the case to the next speaker of the
house.
Pick Flaws in Statues.
In advance of any findings Of
the fine arts commission which
is charged with the work OF
making Washington artistically
worthy, the newspapers and residents
of the capital are calling attention
to the shortcomings, as they view
them, Of some Of the statues of the
great ones as they appear in the pub
lie parks. There are as many minds
on the matter Of wOrthiness or lack
of worthiness as there are monu-
ments
For one who knows that he is not
qualified to pass judgment there re
mains only the course of setting down
what others say. At the south front
Of the treasury building there stands
an equestrian statue of William Te-
cumseh Sherman. The Sherman horse
IS not attempting, like the horse Of
General Jackson which stands in
Lafayette park, to break the natural
law of gravitation, but fault has been
found with it nevertheless, and re
Gently men, who are supposed to
know all about art as it applies to eV-
erything which comes within its
scope, have said that the horse is
bad. Nevertheless, it looks like a
very good horse and there are men
who know horses and who sa.- it IL
well-nigh perfect.
Horse Seems to Be HeadIess.
There is one curious criticism
passed on the Sherman status. It is
said that if you stand at a certain
place on Fifteenth street and look at
the horse it appears to be headIess
1t is true that SheTman's mount has
its head low. The general has given
it the bride and has allowed it to
rest it's neck" for that is what a
horse does under certain circum-
stances. From the Fifteenth street
point of view you look at the head
straight on, and because it is il line
with the body, of course you cannot
see it distinctly. Perhaps the crlti-
cism would not be worth attention
were it not for the fact that it is the
one most constantly in evidence. It
probably had its origin with one of
the guides to the city. who was trying
to find something new to say about
the statue to the strangers in our
midst" who had paid him 90 cents a
head to be enlightened on the show
things Of the city
In the center of Thomas circle
there Is an equestrian statue of Gen
eraI Thomas, Pap" Thomas, the Rock
Of Chickamauga. It is said that the
figure of the general is not all that
it should be, but it might be the
worst thing ever perpetrated in
sculpture, and yet the monument it
self would be a beauty. The horse is
a delight to the eye. 1t has been pro
nounced the most perfect horse in
bronze or marble that this country
holds.
Freedom Shrieked Again.
Some time ago a statue of Koscius-
llo was erected in Lafayette square.
The fault-fnders have had time for a
campaign, and those who seem to
know something about art maintain
that the fault-fnders have plenty of
justification for all that they choose
to say.
We have the word of Thomas
Campbell that Freedom shrieked as
Kosciusko fell" Now the humorous
ly inclined say that freedom shrieked
again as KOsciusko rose in bronze.
Narrow Escape.
An English couple had a narrow es,
cape in the mountains above Fluelen.