Evening star., 1924-10-23
The North Window
BY LEILA MECHLIN

Another equestrian statue has been
set up in this city. which has already
more equestrian statues than any other
city in the world. For the most part our
cavalcade of iron horsemen are heroes
or war. but the latest addition to the
rank and file Is a hero of peace,
Francis Asbury. a. circuit rider of
pioneer days, and the statue by
Augustus Lukeman shows the brave
man OF gentle spirit as he must have
ridden from place to place in the
sparsely settled new country, carry
ing the comforting message Of the
gospel to those who were facing the
austere task of making homes In the
wilderness. 1t is a fine work, and
possesses a singular quietness and
nobility Of dignity. 1t should speak
for all time to passersby of cour-
age and Of character, which are quite
as essential to success and fine liv-
ing in days Of peace as in times of
war.
There have been many less monu-
ments erected however, to heroes of
peace than heroes of war. partly. per-
haps, because the one is unusual and
is invariably associated with the
trappings Of splendor, whereas the
other Is an everyday matter and TAX
en- for granted. But how much easier,
on the whole, IT is to perform some
one splendid heroic deed under ex-
citement than to courageously meet
the exigencies of a daily grind and
meet them in such wise as to give
expression to high ideal. BY all
means, let US memorialize our heroes
of war and all that such heroism
stands for, but let US not forget the
heroes of peace who are with US at
all times.
Xxx X
Despite our bronze war heroes. we
have larger number of memorials
to the heroes Of peace in Washington
than in almost any other place.
Among the most beautiful of these
is the Gallaudet Memorial at Kendall
Green, the work of Daniel Chester
French. This shows, as many are
aware, the great teacher of the deaf
seated in an armchair with little
Alice Cogswell. one of his first pupils,
standing beside him in a trustful,
childish attitude, learning the lesson
which was to open for her avenues
of comradeship and vistas of oppor-
tunity.' and not only to her but to
many physically handicapped. This
monument is essentially plastic in
conception and is rendered with
refinement of feeling and that SEN
sitiveness of understanding which
have characterized Mr.. French's
works. -.. 81
The Mcmillan Fountain in Mcmillan
Park-which Is much too little known
by Washingtonians who live in other
sections of the city. is a monument
to a hero Of peace, Senator Mcmillan,
who had vision of what our Capital
city should be, and in spite of oppo-
sition and ignorance, brought into
being the Burnham Park Commission,
which gave back to us the original
city plan by L'Enfant, enlarged and
beautified. This fountain is the work
of Herbert Adams, who like Mr..
French, has a rare talent which he
has used we'll. sculptor of exquisite
taste and skillful touch, whose whole
life has been given to the creation
of things of beauty, works of art of
lasting value.
Then we have the statue by Charles
Henry Niehaus of Hahnemann, who
enunciated the principle upon which
homeopathy was established. On
streets are the statues by Couper
of Longfellow and Witherspoon. poet
and scholar. In the Smithsonian
grounds is a statue of Joseph Henry
the first secretary of the Smithsonian
Institution, celebrated scientist.
There are eff1gies Of Webster and
Franklin in inconspicuoua places,
neither great works of art, but tokens
of public appreciation.
Quite lately a. statue by Fraser of
Alexander Hamilton-a work which
because of its merit instantly attracts
and charms the eye. has been placed
on the south steps of the Treasury.
This and the Asbury, the Longfellow
the Witherspoon and the Gallaudet
are all portrait statues, yet in all
probability no one Isl an accurate
likeness of the subject; these heroes
of peace left their earthly habitations
many years before the Sculptors who
were to memorable them set to work.
But what does this matter-it Is the
spirit the achievement Of the man
that the public remembers, and 1t is
this which the memorials bring to
mind. 1t is not what a man looks
like, but what he is, what he does,
that is Of consequence, and It is
these spiritual qualities which the
sculptors have emphasized through
the medium of the portrait statue.
How interesting it is to conjec-
ture who will be numbered among
the subsequent additions to the COM
'pany in bronze occupying our park
sites. In what field will they have
achieved; what sort Of heroes will
they be? That which we pass day
Z,
unknown, helps to establish stand
ard and to influence character.
X X y
Edward Box. in an article in one
of the magazines some time ago,
said that the younger generation,
needless as 1t might seem today,
would ask before many years, What
did father dor demanding some
thing in achievement greater than
money making. This is the question
that every small boy asks about a
bronze portrait statue, What did he
do?" And the thought which follows
Immediately upon the heels OF the
reply is, Il would like to be like
him.
Who will select the heroes hence
forth to be memorialized here in our
National Capital? Shall It be left to
chance, to public sentiment, to the
gift Of rich men or grateful people,
hence haphazard-who shall sayY
Fortunately we have in this coun-
try now sculptors capable OF inter-
preting not merely likeness and form,
but spiritual qualities more essential
to the Interpretation of the heroes
of peace than the heroes of war. In
one instance at least, however,
these qualities find expression in a
war memorial, the statue of Nathan
Hale by MacMonnies in City Hall
Square, New York, a tragic figure,
but so nobly rendered that the
scuIptor's ambition that 1t would stop
the passing newsboy and clerk and
give them pause for thought Is fully
realized-a silent eloQuence which
all must feel.
X X X y
Fortunately, also, we have here in
Washington. established and upheld
by the Government, a National Com