The circle banner. [volume] (Circle, Mont.) 1914-1939, 1924-06-06


of Cody, will come upon bronze
statue of the famous frontiersman
for whom the town was named
am equestrian statue, mounted on
q granite terrace and silhouetted
against the sky, the rider gazing
westward to the Rockies.
A remarkable figure was Colonel
William f. Cody, better known as
Buffalo Bill; man whose life was
filled with adventure. He was, at
various times, a rider of the Pony
Express when that was the only con-
nection between the ranches and the
rest of the world; stage driver, a
cowboy, a hunter, a guide, and an
army scout. He engaged in fights
with the Indians, in buffalo hunts,
and in thrilling old-fashioned round
ups. He always wore "shoot1n' irons
and seldom missed target, even
when it was in swift motion. He was
thoroughly familiar with every nook
and Granny of the western plains and
mountains, and had hunted over al
most every mile.
They called him Buffalo Bill be-
cause of his record in shooting those
great beasts, the American bison. He
killed more than 1000 in year and
a half. In fact, the slaughter was
so great that it caused protest. The
meat was not wasted, however, for
at that time the Kansas Pacific rail-
road was in the course of construc-
ton and the buffalo meat was dis
tributed to the workmen for food.
Wild riding and big game shooting
pail bit as one grows older, so Col.
Cody capitalized his experiences by
organizing a wild west show. In his
later days he did his cowboying more
or less by proxy. But, ah, the thrill
when the great Buffalo Bill himself
rode out into the arena! How small
boys adored his splendid riding and
his handsome figure!
1t was the travelling show that
made Buffalo Bill popular in eastern
America and in Europe. That show
was an education in the thrills and
hardships of frontier life; it gave
vivid pictures of the difficulties of
the early pathfinders of the nation
and illustrated the courage of pion-
GERS and scouts.
The Fourth of July this year is the
day chosen for the unwilling of the
new statue. The ceremony will be a
part of the program of the Cody
stampede, an exhibition of shorseman-
ship and the prowess Of the cowboys
given yearly by the people of the
neighboring ranches. For three days
Main street is a mass of life and
color, cowboys in chaps and colored
shirts, cowgirls in broad-brimmed
hats and picturesque riding clothes,
Indians in gay blankets. For three
DAYS visitors can almost believe that |
the spirit of the old west has taken
possession of Wyoming again, be-
cause all the features of the '70s are
present.
Mrs. Whitney's Statue
Colonel Cody's granddaughter,
Miss Jane Cody Carlow, will unveil |
the bronze horseman, which is the
work of Mrs. Harry Payne Whitney. |
fifteen feet high and mount
ed at commanding altitude above
the surrounding country, Buffalo
Bill guards the trail. The statue is
considered one of Mrs. Whitneys
best. No pains were spared to
achieve perfection in every detail; a |
horse was sent from the old Cody |
ranch in order that the proper type
of model should be available-just
such a horse as the cowboy used to
ride Smoky, the model for the
statue, was shipped east, and Mrs.
Whitney chose the type of rider she
wanted and then had the two go
through their PAGES in Central park,
while she studied each gesture and
pose, selecting and. rejecting time
and again before she found what she
believed would convey best the spirit
of Colonel Cody's personality. At
last visualizing him as refining in his
horse to listen for any sound that
might be brought on the wind, she
caught the desired pose.
Because Of the size of the statue
Mrs. Whitney had to have scaffolds
and a revolving platform constructed
so that she could move around her
subject with ease as she worked.
When the question of placing the
statue with a suitable background
arose, it was deemed necessary to
build a special granite platform,
which was no small piece of engin-
eering. Albert R. Ross is the archi-
Cody so that she could see the exact
setting of the work when it should
be completed. The magnificent gran
lite terraces with their horse and
rider form the center of a scene
which has on one side Rattlesnake
on the other Cedar Noun
tain, both peaks snow-capped through
most of the year. A stream of water
has been directed into channel at
the base of the terrace as reminder
of Cody's interest in irrigation.
The Buffalo Bill American asso-
citation, which has General John J.
Pershing for it's chairman, is finan
cling the plan. This association
Sponsors outdoor sport and individ
ualism, and aims to infuse the pres
ent generation with the pioneer
spirit"
Mrs. Whitney's model for the
statue has lately been on exhibition
IN Paris.
Helena-Seth Orrin Banner must
pay for the lives of Florence and