The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1921-02-26

The widely known cartoonist. Albert
r. Reid, a native of Kansas and for
mer resident of Topeka who now lives
in New York City, has been made
chairman of a committee of the Au-
thors' League of America, in charge
of the movement to enable the United
States to join the International Copy
right convention.
This will make it possible for Amer
lean artists, authors, playwrights and
composers to secure protection for
their works in all foreign countries.
The United States and Russia are the
only large nations that do not belong
to the Geneva convention.
Reid has been given authority to
select the other members of the COM
mittee and besides Rex Beach, pres1-
dent of the Authors league; Eric
Schiller, secretary, and Ellis Parker
Butler. chairman of the council ne
will have the active help OF Charles
Dana Gibson, Rupert Hughes, Mary
Roberts Rfnehart, Charles. B. Falls,
owen Davis, Cosmo Hamilton, Otto
Harbach, Victor Herbert, Louis joseph
Vance and Jesse Lynch Williams, The
motion picture industry has also
pledged Reid it's support
Much has already been accom-
plished and it is confidently expected
that favorable action will be had by
the new congress.
Albert Reid's cartoons in the in
terest of the Republican party in the
late presidential campaign made de-
cided hit with the public and con-
tributed much to the Republican sue
cess al the polls. His cartoons, be-
sides appearing regularly in the lead
ing newspapers of the country. were
frequently published and commented
uponin-the- best magazines and re-
views
During the campaign he was in the
employ flf THE Republican national
c9mmittse. but after its close he or
ganizedfi e Reid Cartoon Syndicate, in
New arAkgtwhich is patronized by
many or the countrys large dailies.
So IS T.
A collection of war portraits ex-
hihiteslz att the M etropolitan Museum,
New ork City during the latter part
of January and the first part of Feb
ruary of this year, marked the first
step in the establishment of a national
portrait gallery to be housed in the
Smithsonian Institution, Washington,
d. c.
portraits of distinguished leaders of
America and its allies in the world
war, together with a large picture or
the signing of the peace treaty in the
Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of
Versailles. The portraits are all from
life and were painted by eminent
American artists. chosen and directed
by a national art committee
1t was in the spring of 1919, while
the Versailles peace conference was in
session, that the United States first put
forth a concentrated artistic effort
to make an official pictorial record of
the war Then, under the leadership
of Hon. Henry White, with the intlu-
Croker, Robert w. de Forest. Mrs
f.. H. Hartman, Arthur w. Meeker,
Herbert L. Pratt, ]. Pierpont Morgan
Charles H. Taft, and DIR. Charles d.
Walcott, of the Smithsonian 1nsltu-
ton the idea was conceived and car
ried out, of sending to Europe eight or
ten of our a blest portrait painters, that
these might study from life, the
worlds great soldiers and statesmen
assembled at the Versailles council.
There were many diplomatic com
plexities to overcome and many hard
. ships to be surmounted by those as
signed to carry out this formidable
task and the way in which all obsta-
Giles were triumphantly surmounted. 1t
is said, would make a most stirring
chapter in history. The United States
now possesses a collection of real war
portraits, which in comparison with
those provided for on a grander scale
by France, Great Britain and Canada,
has the distinction that it is broadly
international, instead of being pure
ly national family affair.
That the gift of these paintings to
the National Portrait Gallery might be
a truly national enterprise. 1t was ar
ranged that individual cities should
each provide for a group of portraits.
to be financed by the art patrons OF
that city; such patrons being duly
honored in permanent record when
the collection is finally installed.
The presentations to date are those
made by the cities of New York, Chi
cago, Cincinnati, Cleveland and San
Francisco.
The artists selected to do the work
were John c. Johansen. Douglas Volk.
Charles Hopkinson, Edmund c. Tar
bell, Cecilia Beaux. Joseph de Camp,
Jean Lane and Irving Wiles.
The work so far completed is by
the fist six artists named above. Each
artist was assigned to paint scertain
designated individuals, and the work
assigned to each artist was to be paid
for by designated city The artist
was not, however. necessarily to be a