Publication InformationFlorence Oct 22 1857

Hon George P Marsh

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My Dear Friend

It is a long time since I have written to you, or heard from you--and I owe you a letter -- But I have had little of a satisfactory nature to tell you -- We have had much affliction--have lost a dear little Daughter of 8 years, and have another who has only partially recovered from Rheumatic Fever. My wife too, has been far from well, these last two years----and to add to our troubles, my Government appropriation has never been--and is not likely to be realized, without another act of Congress--taking it out of the hands of the Executive -- My Eminent friend Mr Everett, has done all he could to effect a settlement of the difficulty--and he now writes me, that unless I come home, it is his firm belief that no friend or friends can do any thing -- I cannot leave my family--some of them in so precarious a state of health, and it seems hard that I should be required to do so, when the matter could be settled by a few strokes of the pen by the President, with whom Congress left the commission to be negociated -- You will see the form of the amendment to the Civil and diplomatic list of 1855 by referring to that act of Congress, and thus understand why President Pierce admitted in one of his letters to Mr Everett, that the wording of the Laws would justify him in receiving any Statue of "America" It is clear from the words--"Authorizing the President to contract with Hiram Powers for some work executed or to be executed--and suitable for the adornment of the Capitol--a Sum not exceeding $25000," that some work executed was alluded to, and such indeed was the case. The friends of the measure intended that statue, and the words--"or to be executed" meant, a Colossal substitute should that be deemed preferable -- But Capt Meigs, who seems to have all power in his hands, touching the adornment of the Capitol--has evidently exerted his entire influence to thwart this measure--and some months after the act was passed, went so far as to give an order to Mr Crawford for a Colossal statue of Our Country. I knew nothing of this until the day after Mr C. called upon me on his way to Washington about a year ago, when I saw in the hands of my neighbour--Mr Kinney--a photograph of his statue which is a military figure--with helmet sword and shield--the opposite in all essentials to mine--for I have embodied a peaceful conception of our Country -- I shall not argue the

relative fitness of the two statues, although President Pierce has opened that question in one of his letters to Mr Everett, where he says, "There are two things to be considered--the fitness of the statue & the price" I will only say, that I deem our Country rather an apostle of freedom, than an armed Conqueror--for surely ours--is not a military people--our mission is, to persuade, and not coerce mankind --

Mr Crawford said nothing to me about his commission--although I told him how I had been treated by the Government. But he offered his services, saying--"I am going directly to Washington where I shall see the President and Capt Meigs and if there is any thing I can do for you, command me!" -- You may guess my surprize, when I saw the photograph. Mr Crawford had then left the City -- I then thought I could perceive the reasons for all the prevarication and delay on the part of the President, and Capt Meigs -- They wished to favour one, with whom they were personally acquainted, and after, that I did not expect that they would do any thing for me. For two Colossal statues representing alligories of our Country were not wanted, and if ordered might subject them to trouble with Congress for superfluous expenses -- And I was right, for the matter remained as it was until about a week before the expiration of Gen Pierce['s] term of service, when he told Capt Meigs----that if I would make the statue Colossal, he would receive it and pay the appropriation -- I suppose he thought it hardly possible--at so late a period--that he would be called upon to fulfill that promise. But, Capt Page lost no time in making it known to Mr Everett who at once wrote to all three--and accepted the conditions--offering to execute the agreement -- The President took no notice of Mr Everetts letter but Capt Meigs replied, to say, that he had called on the President who refused to do any thing--even to save the appropriation from lapsing to the surplus fund, where it would have gone but for the timely action of my friend Hon: Mr Campbell of Ohio, who, saved it for another two years, by an Amendment to one of his appropriation bills -- This brought it under the Presidency of Mr Buchanan.

The next move in regard to it, was by Judge McLean

who wrote to Mr Buchanan to know about it This letter was turned over to Gen Cass, who replied--stating, that he had no great relish for aligorical figures, but recommended Capt Meigs as a suitable person to consult about it saying that Capt Meigs was a man of taste and Charged by Congress with the superintendence of the Construction of the Capitol Buildings! -- And there my Commission now rests, in the hands of the man who has stood between the act of Congress and me for more than two years and a half -- Judge McLean very properly declined applying to Capt Meigs--failing, as he stated in his reply to Gen Cass--to discover in his profession (an Engineer) the requisite qualifications for a Judge of the fine arts, or words to that effect -- And here it may not be amiss to make a few remarks in regard to the manner in which our Capitol is being decorated with sculpture under the superintendence of Capt Meigs, and to offer my protest--if not as an artist, at least as an american Citizen against it. You are well acquainted with the history of the arts, and know, how much pains the ancients and even some of the moderns took in decorating their Temples with sculptures They finished not only the fronts, of their statues amp;c., but those portions which will never be seen -- And the Elgin marbles show, with what fidelity grace and truth, the Parthenon was ornamented -- Do you think that any of these works were modelled with , by one artist, and then shipped away 3 or 4000 miles to be executed by Common marble Carvers without the superintendence of the artist himself?--or if they had been so done, that any Lord Elgin would have thought it worth his while to saw them out, and at great expence, preserve them from the shot and shells of barbarians? Is this the way to ? Poor old Ghiberti was forty years doing "The gates of Paradise" but the Steam Engine was unknown in his day -- Is our republic so short lived, that in its Capitol, we must fill up the measure of its artistic glory in a day?--and shall the prices paid measured out by a Capt Meigs be so low, as to shut out some of our artists, unless they will consent to serve the Government for less than they can obtain from Individuals? This is precisely my own case -- Capt Meigs, in a letter to a friend of mine in Washington declares in substance, that if more than 4 or 5000 $

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is paid to some "fortunate individual" those who are willing to work for such sums will feel hurt by it, and he thinks this "would be injurious to art in America" I am now executing a statue, life size, for which I am to receive £1500 stlg. My family is expensive and I cannot afford to work for less--and besides, I am long upon a statue, I have been modelled [modelling] for our Capitol in less time than I think necessary for a single statue of life size -- I do not know how to work so fast, and the more I learn, the slower I am -- for I perceive more and more the deficiencies of all human attempts to personify the "" I know how easy a thing it is to --almost any body can learn the rules of proportion, for they have been laid down in tables, as Simple as the multiplication table, but the knowledge of the latter does not make a Sir Isaac Newton, nor of the former--a Phidias -- Something more than dead figures must enter into the Soul of a Newton, before Heavenly revelations can be made to the world, and something more than meere Anatomical forms must be known and felt before the can be wrought in bronze or marble -- The body is not enough, there must be a soul in the material or it is a failure --

The statue of "Liberty" which is to surmount our New Capitol dome, (It is called "America" in the Artists studio at Rome) has been done in his employ--from a small model by the Artist himself--and it has been sent or will be, to Munich to be cast in bronze, (a dreadful malady has prevented the Artist from doing more than prepare the small model) and I suppose, that this statue will be received while mine will be rejected -- Surely this was not the intention of Congress -- They did not mean that I should be mocked with the show of a Commission! and that their solemn act should be set aside by the management of an officer in their employ --

I pray you to make this known to any of the Representatives of my native state whom you may know, and with our United regards to you and yours, believe me sincerely your friend,

Hiram Powers --

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On reading my letter over which was written at a sitting I find that it might be much amended, if I had time to write it over again, but the Statements are all right, and you will have seen that the whole difficulty lies at the door of Capt Meigs--who has interposed his influence, between me and Congress--and thus kept back the appropriation --

There can be no mistake about the intention of the appropriation--which was to enable the President to purchase my Statue of "America" as it is--or upon a Colossal scale. The friends of the measure so understood it in Congress, and Gen Pierce has admitted that the wording of the law would justify this Construction--and little did I dream that there would be any difficulty about it -- My very kind friend Mr Everett, who has done his best to effect an arrangement now writes me that it is his firm belief--that unless I go home no friend or friends can do any thing--and I cannot go home on account of the bad health of some of my family -- We desire to go home altogether, and this appropriation promised to put it in our power to do so. We relied upon it, and you may judge how great is our disappointment --

I did not suppose for a moment, that there would be any bargaining about the price, for I thought that Congress had most liberally settled that--and I took it as an honourable mark of recognition--and so some of my friends wrote me -- Having to execute several works for the $25000 would make the order profitless to me, or at most not as good as private commissions. Surely this was not the intention of Congress -- I am the oldest of American sculptors--and have waited more than 20 years for some mark of consideration from the Government--which came at last, but it had better never have come, for it has been made a mockery by the Executive--and I have been subjected to much inconvenience from having counted upon it -- I believe that no other American Artist has been treated in this manner, and if I could go home I would not now, for the purpose of importuning the Executive -- I had rather suffer the loss than the humiliation--for I am not without some self respect, nor without confidence in Congress which gave me the order, and can if so disposed confirm it --

an article has lately appeared in the Washington Union headed, "Capitol Extensions Items of Cost" Evidently furnished by Capt Meigs, Since it contains a paragraph from one of my letters to him, calculated to place me in a false light before the public. It makes me appear to spurn the offer of a government commission -- But Capt Meigs knows well what I meant. He did not invite me to accept a commission in the letter to which that was a reply, but only to for one and prepare designs--subject to his consideration & refusal on acceptance--nine tenths of its readers in the Union--would not so understand it and Capt Meigs knows this --

Now, there are many artists who will not propose for a Commission--although ready to accept one when offered. Capt Meigs did indeed offer it to me almost in direct terms afterwards, when I declined it and gave my reasons in the most respectful terms, and were he to publish the entire of my Correspondence with him, the Case would be Clear enough -- But all this was before had given me a Commission -- I have sent Copies of the letter from which Capt Meigs has quoted--and another, which I requested a mutual friend to read to him, to my friend N Longworth Esqr of Cincinnati to be used if necessary -- It is hardly necessary to say more upon this subject, for although I might add a good deal to show, that the whole difficulty lies at the door of Capt Meigs, I have said enough I think, to satisfy you of the fact --

We have heard nothing from George this long while. What has become of him? We have--all of us a very high regard for him and should be glad to know what he is about --

My inventions have not yet come out, owing to want of time on my part to complete them, and want of mechanical assistance here -- One of them will be ready in a few weeks--when I shall send the finished machines to London and home, to be --

H. P.

References in this letter:

Frances Austin Powers ("Fannie"), Hiram and Elizabeth Powers' seventh child, was born in Florence in 1849 and died there, apparently of rheumatic fever, in 1857.

Powers' heroic statue of a partially-clothed female figure representing the United States was modeled in plaster between August 1848 and September 1849. The marble replica made from it, completed in 1855, never found a buyer and was destroyed in a warehouse fire in Brooklyn, New York, in 1865.

Lewis Cass (1782-1866), Brigadier General in the U.S. army and for eighteen years (1813-1831) governor of the Michigan Territory, was a U.S. Senator (1845-1857), Democratic candidate for president in 1848 (losing to Whig Zachary Taylor), and Secretary of State under James Buchanan (1857-1860).

Lorenzo Ghiberti (1378-1455), a Florentine painter and sculptor, was awarded a commission in 1403 to construct bronze doors for the baptistry of San Giovanni Battista in Florence; he completed the north portal in 1424 and the east portal in 1447 [or 1452].