Evening star., 1941-03-02

the neImeC While pnOLgOrapnE&
took my picture. He couldn't says
Look pleasant or Hold your chin
a little higher, please because he
was at South First street and New
Jersey avenue. tied rope through
the eyebolt in the center Of the
top of the head so that blight waa
formed, which hung down the slop.
ing side of the head. placed my
right foot in the blight. The left
foot was on the top Of the head.
Standing thus, the photograph waa
taken.
in the stereoscopic view which
Mr.. Thomas has his form looks like
that of a blackbird newly lighted on
Liberty's head.
After the photographer had
dropped his handkerchief TO signify
that he had done with me, I dropped
on my right knee and took aham-
mer from one pocket and some
steel dies of letters from another
pocket With blow on each die,
I stamped words on the topmoSt
feather of the plume. They have
never been seen by any one but my
self, and will not be in a thousand
years. 1 believe the statue will never
need repairs. The words are as fol-
lows:
ga. Lincoln, President of the
United States; Hugh Walker, Archi-
| tect; B. B. French, Commissioner Of
Public Buildings; Charles r.
Thomas, Superintendent of Con-
struction of the New Dome"
"Is it fact that Vulcan's face
in the aIegorical painting to the
eye of the dome. over the rotunda,
is your portrait?"
1T is fact"
1t has been questioned whether or
rot the plaster model in the Ma
tional Museum and the bronze sta
tue surmounting the Capitol are in
appearance identical. In speaking Of
the plaster model, when it was
transferred to the museum in 1890.
| the late Edward Clark, architect OF
the United States Capitol, said:
. 1t formerly stood in the Old
Hall OF the Representatives, but was
taken apart and stored in the base
AAANAAS VI CA4C
When it arrived at the museum.
1t had been taken apart, and was in
number of sections-perhaps az
many as eight, although the bronze
figure is said to only contain five
sections bolted together. It is quite
llkely-and about the only conclu-
sion one could come to-that these
plaster sections were used in making
! the sand molds from which was
cast the bronze statue, and naturally.
would necessarily be identical. ex-
cept, of course, as to material Of
composition.
Parts Put Together.
At the museum, the parts were
put together by the late 1t. r. Dix
BolleS, U. S. NJ, and Theodore Mills,
son of the same Clark Mills who
carried out Crawford's design in
metal. Bolles did the engineering
work and Mills modelled in the miss
ing parts-for it was not by any
means in perfect condition after
having been stored in the basement
OF the Capitol for so many years.
Feathers were broken of, a star or
two was missing, several of the
balls circling the border of the
cloak or dress were absent, a part
OF the nose was gone, as well as other
projecting parts easily broken in
moving. To sculptor these were
easily replaced, as they were of a
decidedly minor character, and the
restoring of them did not alter in the
least the appearance of the model
to that of the bronze cast.
After the plaster model of the
statue was erected and restored in
the rotunda of the museum, in 1890,
1t was labeled Statue of Liberty"
And soon thereafter appeared a COM
munication ITO the Editor of The
Evening Star" reading as follows:
Some weeks ago The Star pub
hshed a list (eXtracted, believe,
from the annual report of the archi-
tect of the Capitol of the works Of
art within the Capitol and in the
custody of the architect. Among
them was enumerated plaster copy
in miniature of the statue of the
Goddess of Freedom which sur
mounts the dome. In your issue
of Monday you published q letter
from Mr.. ]. P. Walker in regard to
the same statue, which he calls the
! grand statue of liberty on the dome
of the Capitol Your editor who
puts the headings to the published
articles places over Mr. Walkers
letter the caption The Goddess Of
Liberty Now, the statue on the
dome is not that of the Goddess Of
Freedom or the Goddess of Lib
erty.' nor yet that of Liberty The
name given to it by its author, the
sculptor Crawford, was Freedom
pure and simple. Freedom and
liberty are nearly synonymous
terms, and Mr. Walker is not so
very far wrong. But the architect
of the Capitol and The Star ought
to be better informed on matter
1 of this kind. It seems to me that
the pfyin designation, Freedom is
SO dig.lif1ed and so appropriate to
this noble work Of art that it should
be adhered to. T. F. j."
The result was that after carefully
weighing the evidence the label was
changed to Freedom" and so 1t is
today, and the Statue Of Freedom
is also the form used in the Con-
gressional Directory, giving o brief
history Of the Capitol.