Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-09-05
WATERLOO MONUMENTS FATE
LIKE STATUE OF GEORGE iii

IN HE Lion monument of Waterloo. a
bronze image cast from French
cannon and surrounding an arti-
fetal hill, has been removed by the Ger
mans, according to report, and cast into
the melting pot that the copper and tin,
especially the copper, contained in 1t,
may be used in making ammunition
This will remind many Americans that
a statue was once converted into bull
lets by Americans. The statue was that
of George III. 1t was of lead. gilded to
represent gold, and stood in the green
called Bowling Green, in New York city.
at the lower tip of Manhattan Island.
1t was an equestrian statue. 1t had
been set up and unveiled with consider
able ceremony August 81, ITO. In the
diary of John Adams for August 20.
1774. may be read what follows:
Between the fort Con the Battery
and the city is a beautiful ellipse of
land. rallied in with solid iron, in the
center of which is a statue of his mai
esty on horseback, very large. of solid
lead, gilded with gold, standing on a
pedestal of marble, very high"
Washington. with the Continental
army, was at New York when the Dec
laration of Independence was promul-
gated. 1t was read by an aid to Wash
ington to the troops drawn up around
City Hall Square. At the conclusion of
the reading it has been said that some
one started the Cry, "On to Bowling
Green" or Pull down the kings stat
ue." or some such cry. A large num-
Der of people who had been attracted
to the ceremonies in the City Hail
Square started down Broadway toward
the site of the statue. There is a story
that the crowd was led by Capt. Isaac
Sears and a band of men on horseback.
The crowd grew in size as 1t surged
down the street, and, arriving at Bowl
ing Green, the iron fence surrounding
the statue was broken down, ropes put
around the king and the horse, and the
monument pulled down. This happened
late in the afternoon of July 9. 1875. :,
The PROSTATE statue was mutilated
by men with axes and sledges. The
idea of converting the lead horse and
rider into bullets. sadly needed by the
troops of the colonies, was taken up,
and Benson ]. LOSING in The Field
Book of the American Revolution"
writes that that part of the statue
which had not been hacked away was
taken to Litchfleld, Conn, where
party of patriotic citizens, under the
leadership of the family of Gov VOL
colt, cast the lead into bullets. and
stout paper cylinders containing pow
der. In Lossing's book may be read
this concerning the fate of the statue
of George Ill that stood in Bowling
Green:
: Lead then being scarce and dear,
the statue was broken into pieces and
the metal transported to Litchfield-a
place of safety. The ladies of this viii
lage converted the lead into cartridges
for the army, of which the following
is an account: Mrs. Marvin, cartridges.
6,05S; Ruth Marvin. cartridges, 1852;
Laura Wolcott. cartridges, s.37S; Mary
Ann Wolcott. cartridges 10,7sO; Fred
erick Wolcott. cartridges. 936; Mrs.
Beach. cartridges, 1.S02; made by sun
dry persons. cartridges, 2.1S2: gave
militia alarm cartridges, SO;
have 900; cartridges, 42,0S8."
In Men on Horseback" a paper on
the equestrian statuary of Washing
ton, read before the Columbia His
torical Society in 1901 by the late S. H.
Kauffmann, may be found many facts
of interest concerning equestrian stat
ues, and the following is taken from
that paper:
THE first statue of this order (eques-
trian) put up and now existing within
the limits of the United States-though
not the first erected on this continent
was unveiled and still stands in Wash
ington. But the one yet existing which
antedates this one was set UP in a
neighboring county and in honor of a
European monarch who did absolutely