The New York herald., 1922-03-17
THEY'RE NOT WOMEN,
AYERS MAC NOMINEES
Mayor and Other Professors,
Says Sculptor, Are Defend
ing Pair Of Fish.
FIGURES ARE MERMAIDS
Estimate Board to Decide To-
day What 1t Will Do About
Mass Meeting.
FIGURES ARE MERMAIDS

out of the surge and welter of charge
and counter charge in the Episode Of
the Rough Guy, out of the chorus Of
criticism and comment whirling around
the MacMonnies group designed to
stand on the fountain pedestal in City
Hall Park, flashed yesterday the start
ling fact that the two women on whom
the Rough Guy has his Number Tens
planted are not women at all but half
woman, half fish.
In the minds OF all concerned. the
BurgomasteE of New Amsterdam, his
councillors and the Art Commission,
the representative women who had ex-
pressed annoyance over any symboliza-
ton Of civic virtue that had to boot
lady and also the sculptors and artists
heatediy supporting MacMonnies in his
symbolism, the question arose:
When is a lady not a lady?
So far as the artists are concerned,
the answer was: When half of her is
striped bass.
Even the Mayors supporters in the
contention that the extremely careless
way employed BY the Rough Guy in
using his feet to get away from tempta-
tion is an Insult to womanhood and
degradation Of probably the most ad-
mired sex the world ever knew were
Jared by Mr.. MacMonniess reminder
that it is a pity to waste so much
beautiful sentiment on pair of poor
fish.
"UDIif.ers Defend Fish"
According to the distinguished sculp-
tor-who may be presumed to know
since the whole Civic Virtue group.
Rough Guy, recumbent females. big
mouthed dolphins and all the rest are
the children of his brain-Mayor Hylan
and the uplift ladies of the city are
now in the quaint position of defending
a couple of fish from insult and abuse.
"Oh, dammit ALL" said Mr.. MacMon-
nies, who seemed yesterday to be more
than a little weary of the whole con-
troversy as TO whether he had inten-
tionally or unintentionally designed a
slight to the now ruling sex. those two
women at the feet OF the virtuously tri-
Imphant young man are not actually hu-
man beings. How can they be, dognabit!
when they are half fsh-mermaids?
What does the Mayor want me to do?
Put label on one mermaid pointing out
that she is a weakfish and another label
on the other to tell the world that 1t Is
a seabass? Whoever heard Of city
government getting excited because
somebody happened to step on a fish?
The ideas wholly absurd"
Z Estimate Board Meets To-day.
With which Mr.. Frederick MacMon-
mics was entirely through for the day
having exploded a bombshell that may
worry The gentlemen or the Board of Es-
timate when they meet OF, the morning
OF this Seventeenth of Ireland tc con-
slider, among other city shaking propo-
sitions, the Mayors suggestion that they
call a public hearing so that the woman
hood OF the city may have a chance to
protest against MacMonnies's Rough Guy
and the way he kicks ladies around.
If Mr.. MacMonnies is correct. and the
noted marble chiselers of The Bronx. the
brothers Piccirilli. say he is. then the
Board of Estimate this morning finds
itself in the position OF calling a mass
meeting 10 protest against the unneces-
sarily harsh treatment OF a pair OF fish.
Throughout the heat OF the controversy
the Art Commission has maintained inn
penetrable silence. Nobody knows what
they think OF the browbeaten ladies or
the poor fish (Which you WILD, but the
impression Is that they rather side with
MacMonnies and the artists who highly
admire the dignity and beauty Of the
group.
Robert w. de Forest is president Of
the commission. Frank l.. Babbott is
vice-president. and the other members
are the Mayor. I. N. Phelps Stokes.
painter: Charles Keck. sculptor Welles
Bosworth. architect and r. T. II. Halsey
and Edward c. Blum. The commission
lacks two members, the Mayor having
failed to appoint on January or subse-
auently successors to Luclen Oudn and