Evening Star Newspaper, December 9, 1923, Page 87

THE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, One of World’s Famous Sculptors ... Now in Washington’s Art Colony ¢ 'Re W. Clark Noble Has Won Twenty-nine of t’lg Last Thirty-three Outstanding Comgpetitions, a cord Never Before Equaled in the Art World—He Is a Native American Sculptor, Trained | Overcome Before Disabled Craft Is Finally Raised From Bottom of Sea by Heroic Efforts of _ Entirely in the United States, Yet He Has D efeated the Best Sculptors of Europe—Athletic Qualities Unusual in One of His Profession. BY GEORGE H. DACY. ASHINGTON is now the per- manent residence of one of | the world's most famous sculptor: an artist who has twenty-nine of the last thirty-ihree national and interna- tional competitions: a remarkable man, who in training, temperament and aggressive activities wholly vio- lates the innate conceptions that the laity conjures up when it attempts to visualize the word “sculptor.” W. Clark Noble now lives on upper 15th street, where he maintains the most beautiful studio in the National Capital. He is a bred and trained American sculptor, who has @emon- strated irrefutably that an earnest won and_conscientious worker, gifed with ' e as great nd of hi abroad under artistic talents, can %cqui mastery and skill in this nativity &s he can by living for several vears and studyix the best teachers in Eutope Ther absolutely long hair and flowing tie newest and greatest addition to Washington" ist colony. Mr. No- ble is a man’s man. e can go into the gymnasium with the best experts of America and hold his own in a hout either with the boxing gloves @r with foils. He can discuss the most dntimate complexities of anatomy &ith the world's leading surgeons to their mutual benefit. There is not an architect in the United States but who is eager to receive suggestions end advice from this prominent American sculptor. When it comes to a matter of wood €arving, working with clay, bronze or suarble, or painting in ofl or water golors, Mr. Noble does not have to &oft his hat to any man in all cre- ation. Te is in none of the about this dynamic, overflowing with encrgy, Sorceful, unswerving in his Jovalty to his convictions, athletic, upright and honorable HE measure of a to our national standards, is gauged by his achievements. His bronze relief memorial of Bishop Phii- 1ip= Brooks in the Church of the Tncarnation, New York city, is an epochal preduction. It is one of the largest and most remarkable exam- ples of ecclestastical portrait-sculp- ture in this country. There are three pieces in the Vatican at Rome by Pir. Noble. One bas-relief shows b Roliness seated on the ®hrone in his canonical robe bronze is in two colors, in itselt remarkable feature. The metal mounted on mahogany, with the yope's coat of arms worked in sev- eral colors in leather placed in the morocco setting. The Noble busts of Heury W. Long- fellow, Nathaniel Hawthorne and Tenry Cabot Lodge are epics of the sculptor's art. Critics have said of them that they we works of art—so acc Ute that seemed as though the likenesses were possessed of the Buman powers of mind and speech. One of Mr. Noble's greatest pieces 't work {s a statue of Robert Burns, wmimple in arrangement, forceful in ymovement of lines and form, graceful snd manly in pose, as well as a marvel in the execution of textures. fThe statue is a lifelike picture of the wuthor of “Auld Lang Syne” Its ~alue has been estimated at $35,000 R0 $40,000. A bas-rellef, called “For Humanity panel depicting the lives sacrificed man, according rate and true to it [ for the well being of posterity during | the world war, i3 another of Mr. Noble's masterpieces, A bronze of an "Old Newport Salt” Is a striking cre- It represents one of the rap- disappearing types of old sea «aptains. The figure is so realistic that 1t fairly teems with the atmqs- Phere of the sea. Tt was a post- haste execution of genius, modeled and completed in four hours. It sold Iatterly for $8,000, Several studies of the American siegro that Mr. Noble made are also without equals in their accuracy to type and faithful portrayal of facial peculiarities and expressions. It took the sculptor only two hours of work ®piece to complete these small busts. One day Mr. Noble became inter- ®sted in 4 panther stretched out in its cage at the Zoo Park. Thereafter he modeled from memory a fine rep- ¥esentation of this wild beast The Noble statue of William Ellery Channing at Newport is considered by fmeny critics to be the finest example ©f a standing portrait figure in America. His Soldiers and Sailors’ smonument at Newport is an ideal pro- duction, while the Walters memorial, ity Hall, Newport; the statue of Gen, Portor in Van Cortland Park, New York city; portrait relfef of Bishop Potter; portrait of Edward Everett Hale; statue of Monsignor Doane, 's\"n\\‘nfln . J.; portrait of Pope Leo X111, life size; bust of Pope Pius | AT WORK IN THE STUDIO OF THE L MR. jeweled crucifix in the Church of I St. Mary the Virgin, New York city, | #ald to ve the most elaborate of its ikind in America: challenge statue, Antletam; colossal, statues of Napo- [leon, Jefferson and “Mad” Anthony Wayne; an ideal statue for the State Capitol and statue of edge” for the Augusta Public Li- brary; bas-relief of Gen. Joseph Wheeler: monument of Belle Archer: ideal group. “The Morning Tide atue of Harriet Beecher Stow 1 85,000 Jefferson loving cup, and 100 I'portraits of public men and private citizens constitute the American col- |lection of W. Clark Noble's work. Many of his masterpieces have also Dbeen marketed in England and on the coutinent ) i \II}. 'OBLE'S early tors were “¥1 pioneer vovagers on the May- {flower, when that old wooden \ ang good re than zrenl“shin first established moorings in the ors was | new world. One of is ance an intimate comrade of Miles Stand- ish. Turn through the pages of the art history of England and you will read of a notable Matthew Noble, a | British Isles sculptor, who created a |number of wonderful sculptures, among them Oliver Cromwell and the Earl of Derby. Compare the excellent technique of this Englishman with that of W. Clark you will notice a marked similarity lin skill and adeptness of execution The W. Clark Noble of today Is a modernized and improved edition of the former Mafthew Noble, one of Clark’s forebears. The father of W. Clark & hardy sea captain who sailed from the New England ports to all quarters of the globe. When W. Clark Noble was ten months old his father was lost at sea with his ship. The infant orphan then went to live with his grandfather at Gardner, Me. At the hibited the first evidence of his ar tistic talents. of clay at the rear of the grand- father's farm and there the boy would spend hours dajly, moulding tiny figures of animals and- people out of the crude clay. Two vears later young Noble found and palnstaking read and reread a book on the life of Thorwaldsen, the great Danish sculptor, which de- termined -his career. His relatives wished him to follow.the sea, as most of the family before him had done. Clark, however, decided otherwise. He worked in a Maine lumber mill sev- eral vears and finally saved enough money to go to Boston, where he hoped to get employment in some branch of the sculpturing and archi- tectural industries. Entering the workshops and offices of a leading Boston firm one morn- ing, the fourteen-year-old boy finally gained the attention of one of the partners. When the lad applied for ST THIRTY-THRE] ior more other bronzes, memorials and | Noble of today and | Noble was| age of six years the youngster ex-| There was a great hill | PBLE HAS WON TWE COMPETITIONS ENTERED. the man gh pay he w grufy ed. inquired how Youns Noble . “1 don’t want to earn yihing uld like to learn so: thing.” The an of commerce put the hoy to work when he had learned the rudi- lents of the industry paid him § eek. At the age of seventeen vea lark Noble was foreman of eight Ur men in that same plant. man devoted for { | ) ! THIS CAST OF AN OLD NEW. PORT SEA CAPTAIN WAS MOD- ELED BY MR. NOBLE IN FOUR Inis spare time to study of architec- ture and sculpture. He gained pro- ficiency in both design and modeling in clay, plaster, wood, marble and bronze and learned all the orders of architecture. Just at the time when affairs looked the brightest a union known as the National Modelers' Union came into being. Clark Noble refused to join. As a result, ulti- mately, he lost his positlon in Bos- ton, and everywhere throughout the city he was refused work because he was a non-union man. Noble was nothing in those davs if not .a fighter. He traveled to New York, Philadelphia, Baitimore and even as far west as Chicago in search of the work that he loved. In each of these cities he was debarred from employment in the modeling industry because he was not a member of the national union. * Kk x INALLY, defeated and discourag the boy returned to Boston. It happened that from the time he was ten years old he had been interested in boxing, and through regular prac- tice had acquired remarkable pro- ficiency in the sport. He happened in at one of the gy asiums where he had formerly exercised and in a chance conversation told his troubles to the director. “Well, if there's no possible chance of obtaining work in your line, why not try mige?' suggested the expert training. I know of an w which is about to go on {in physi | athletic the road amd travel coast and all over Ame the word T'll get you | program. It was coast If you sa wce on th to thus that K barked in professional time. His success In sports was un- usual during the following vear. He was able to save up enough mency to continue his self-financed art studies. Most boys in similar need and aif- ficulty would have appealed to their relatives for assistance. That was not Clark Noble's system. He fought his own battles—and won. These victorics, unquestionably, were carly auguries— prophetic of the more important con- tests which Noble was to win in the world of art. Nobl athletics for a em- Subsequently, Mr. Noble studied and worked with James Priestman, an architectural sculptor of Hoston, and later, in New York city, with Willlam Hunt, one of the greatest archiltectural sculptors of his time. the ambitious student took up figure drawing and the study of anatomy. Noblo also studied with a certain Dr Rimmer, one of the early_ disc American art. Noble devoled three en- | tire years to anatomical dissection, dur- ling which he gained full knowledge and {a true foundation for the building of {the human figure. As architecture and ;.whlplux'c' are closely allied, Nobie's training as a draughtsman has alway been an outstanding asset to him. His remarkable knowledge of human anat- omy enables him almust to put life into the statues and vait sculp- ture which he desi creates Clark orn and Am and proud of it Notwithstanding, the masters of _all Europe characterize him as “America’s greatest living sculptor.” 1In anony- mous competitions in the United States and on the continent Noble has re- peatedly defeated the best sculpturing | talent. His vears of hard preparatory work, thorougly knowledge of anat- | omy. his cqmpiete familiarity with painting nius have all com- bined to him a master. Despite the fact that most Amerfcans are| prejudiced in favor of foreign-taughe Noble is universally recognized | hampion of champions.” © is one of the four original | founders of the Natfonal Sculptors’ So- | ciety and also one of the charter or- | Banizers of Ngw York's Arts Club, After the world war Mr. Noble dedi- cated one year of his work to the cause of the disabled veterans. He made In- numerat statues, bas-reliefs and busts, and painted many pictures dur- | ing that period. All these were auc- tioned off at charity functions, and the procecds were allotted to funds for the use and entertainment and assistance of wounded soldiers. Mr. Noble is as profifent with brush and palette as he is with the sculptor’s chisel. Howev not paint professionally. Several hundred marines which adorn his home are mute testimonials of his great merit. He paints as a hobby and relaxation from his modeling ac- tivities. The only pletures of his that have ever Leen offered for sale are those that were auctioned to raise funds for the disabled soldiers the dome of * ok ok % O.\' Augusta, Me. there is a fine| statue, a repouses in pure copper, valued at $35,000, which Clark Noble save to his home state. It so hap- pened that the Maine authorities ne- glected to set aside any funds for the ornamentation of the capitol dome. Learning by chance that the contractors were going to put a cheap $300 zinc figure on the dome, Clark Noble came forw: a vol- unteered to supply the material and his services free of charge for the proper adornment of the dome. That is the “how come” of one of the finest pieces of art work in ene of our northernmost seats of state govern- ment. Many portrait miniatures in porce- lain which Mr. Noble has made are outstanding for their fineness of de- tail and their photographio similarity to the originals. Most sculptors who attempt such work make the por- traits on a large scale and have them reproduced by machinery. Mr. Noble, on the other hand, models his pro- ductions directly with special tools of his own invention. No one has ever been able to duplicate his re- markable process of copying in por- celain’ from the modeling wax orig- inal. This process is also a private method which Mr. Noble has per- fected. Some of his most superb por- tralts of this description have been made from old daguerreotypes. 1 The artistlc creations of Mr. NBble | are oconvincing—they show con- Simultaneously, s and is Amerlcan “ he does the capitol iu {y1e was crazed wth the desire to get | Lawrence’ Clark { ! science, sympathy, insight and rev- erence for the canons of high art. His genius finds outlet in the incep- tion and perfection of wonderful bronze, marble and copper creations. They tell & remarkable story about the great speed at which Clark Noble works, up Newport and New York way, where the famous American sculptor formerly resided. A great public testimonial to the late Lester ‘Wallack was held in a mammoth auditorfum. Mr. Noble was invited to attend and to make & bust of Mr. Wallack from several photograph: in full vlew of the great assemblage. Overnight the sculptor accepted, and without any rehearsal whatsoever made a public demonstration of his skill. It took him exactly nineteen minutes to make the bust before the audience, with only the piotures as models. Subsequently, this bust was sold for $3.000 by a dealer who pur- D. C, DECEMBER 9, 1923—PART 5. Imprisoned in Sunken Submarine, "Two Desperately Fight for Life Wast, En;lure and Watch for Rescuers During Long Hours in Watertight Chamber—Nearly Navy's Divers and Sailors—Hydrogen Blast and Chlorine Freed by Acid Add to Perils of Situation—W eird Flames and Heat. By PROSPER BURANELLL CLIMAX of terror, weirdn and startling fantasy is to be discovered in the full report of the recent sinking of the United States submarine O-5 off Pan- ama. The merchantman feet of thirty plunges. is rammed by a forty her undersea bout and founders in water. Twenty-four of men get away safely as she Six mgm go down with the broken hulk. Three dle. One, trap- ped in a flooded compartment, makes a ghostly escape to the Surface. TWO are imprisoned in a water-tight cham- ber. For a phantom-haunted day and a hglf they lie in their black vault at the bottom of the sea, enduring ordeal monetrous in fright and unearshly memmce. Then they are rescuesl from their sunken tomb. At sunrise three underwater craft running awash, slid into Limon bay, bound for,the Atlantic entrance of the canal to make the transit into the | Pacific: The O-5 was In the lead. caming toward them came the United Fruit lner Abangarez. The 0-5 lay across her bow. There was a The two yessels sought to elude each other, but the oncoming merchantman bore directly upon the submarine. It was seen that the O-5 must take the crash. There were frantic shouts. Men rushed up from below. “Close the torpedo room door:” the |* command sounded, as the officer on deck of the submarine ordered the compartment shut. With these afr chambers sealed the craft might float A man ran to the hateh—Henry Berault, the torpedo dispatcher. He flung himself down the hatch to the torpedo room. In the dim ¥ight he saw @ man sleeping on a oot there. back up to the surface, but he darted into the long, low chamber and roused the slumberer, whom he =aw to be Erown, the electrician's mate. A crunching ide. and both men went sprawling to the floor. The boat Turched and swung over onto one side. Water poured down the hatchway and flushed the tor- pedo, room. They struggled to the door. They 4 ot be able to make thelr way up against the rush water. They forved the door shut in front of them. A foot of water lay at the lower slope of the floor. They scrambled to the upper slope and clung to a stanchion to keep out of the water and waited in pale anx- iety, The bow of the towering merchant- had rammed the submarine at the middle. 1Iron piates had bee wrenched apart and water, was food- ing the craft's vitals thrbugh lurge the ©-5. listing still further, to settle. Two dozen men leap- ed from the slanting deck into the sea and swam. A rescuing boat swung down the side of the steam * man * % * OMEWHERE in the intricate vitals of the doomed submarine were Clyde Hughe: motor machinist's mate; Thomas Metzler, fireman, and Fred Smith, Panaman mess attendant. The water came upon them and they ruggled and dled \On the steep spiral stairway to the aft hatch a man waged a mad fight. Charles R. Buttler, chief machinis mate, was at the throttle in the en- gine room when the crush came and flung him to the floor. He ran to the gangway, scampered up and was near the top when a torrent of water through the pipe-like hatchway knocked him stumbling back. He struggled to his feet and lurched his way up again, but once more the rush of water beating on the nartow iron stairway flung him bac| now into the rising water. He floundered up and for a third time was thrown back. The surging water engulfed him. He struck out with frantle swimming strokes, got to the engine and climb- ed up its side, as the water rose around him. On top of the engine he waited like a trapped animal. Then he saw that the water had ceased to i An air pocket had formed at the theater where the testimonial was held. This work is known as the best portrait of Lester Wallack. * % k% R. NOBLE seldom uses any hu- man models. He idealizes and creates human figures for his statues and pther works of art. They are products of his thorough anatomical knowledge of the human body. In all his creations the poses are admirable, exactly the right muscles are taxed while other muscles are relaxed. The defects of an erronmcous posturs or position never appear to flaw this versatile master's work. He knows accurately what is scientifically cor- rect in his subject matter. The models of his mind’s eve are invaria- bly 100 per cent true to type and scale. Very soon mow a beautiful photo- graph of all the great art works of Clark Noble will be on display in the Library of Congress—the finest art collection of its kind evef made Ly an American sculptor. Some day, per-| chance, the millions.of America may revere a great memorial to the American woman, which Clark Noble hopes some day to build. This has been his cherished dream of more than thirty vears. He has expénded approximately $40,000 of his own money in-the perfection of deslgn and plans, which are now finished. The structure will cost' $6,000,000, will take five years to build, and will be located on an appropriafe site prox- imate to the Potomac. ‘The monument when completed fs to be 168 feet high, in the form- of an arch standing upon an oval base 300 feet wide and broken by sweeps of steps. This arch ahd the ateps are to be of marble. On either side of the arch there will: be a bronse panel 38 feet ‘high, with groups of figures in Tow and high rellef. Within the arch there will be a ball of nemorials and records representing the achleve- THE UNITED STATES SUBMARINE O-5. WHICH S CANAL. the top of the compartment, and was In this pocket * rested for one ntemplating his desti he appalling mo- n. 1 sure in the air pocket was | Increasing oppressively as the boat | slowly Now ttled on the s bursting, his thoug! He could not live in t son nook for more tha Delivium and de: e him strange few m were befo He summoned all of a last despairing effort boat well and could t listed such pocket had fo hatchway. With water beneath him and a few ming strokes ,he migh through the opening of the sea. How deep the sea w here he could not He mi; die before he got to the surface it was his only hope. Swiftly he threw off his clothes & his senses He knew in a way the ed that just div rise to the surf 0! gness, hts his na ath | for the 11 that she had the im- up ace ght But and made a reckoning of the exact posi- tion of the hatch opening with MEN RESC AND ¥ 3 ’ HENRY BERAULT. ONE OF THE | NIGHT OF IMPRISON the JED AFTER A DAY MENT IN THE SUNKEN SUB. MARINE. desperate intensity stakes his life on h himselt down and in the dir supposed the hatch was. himself rise. ly against an obstacle. of despair, but his hands told him that the hatch cover. The hatch was o half open. Trapped in the shell at the bottom of the sea, man s guess. He ion where Then he A crazily ild clu grop terrified man made a last effort. Wi a mad wrench he slid the hatch co fully open. RBut now a weird fo caught and swirled him. The margin of the air pocket lain near the edge of the half clo hatch cover. a great of the’ heavily Dpressed air was released. ward. mass who let to the water, beat his way he let His head struck heavi- 3 he had struck nly sunken the ith ver ree rad sed The cover pushed open, com- It shot up- 1t caught the body of the man there was a slight | bottom. would come alive to the surface SCAPES. in fts fantastic grip and propellcd him like a missile toward the surface. He was twisted by the blast, | straightened out, and shot up head | foremost. | * X ® X INNE minutes after the had gone down the survivors in boats and the people of the ship saw a vast bubbling of the water and a man arose upright, flung up out of the sea as if by some demonic power, ntil his feet were out of the water. He fell back, swimming. In the torpedo room the two youths, Berault and Brown, clung to their Dplaces at the upper slope of the floor and waited in nerve-tearing anxie After thirty seconds the lights went out. The water had got into the bat- tery erault had a flash lamp, and quickly a narrow white beam cut the utter da They thought of the torpedo tube. They had heard of mer shooting themselves out,of tor tubes and rising to the surface the water. It was said that prisor. the holds of battleships had leased themselves In that way. A tor- pedo was merely pushed out into water by A could lie in the tube and by hunching up his knees could fill it sufficiently for the pressure of the packed air thrust him into the water. Berault inspected the torpedo dis- charging apparatus. E workable. Boats would the to make there was only a s escaping me riking against a bottom and 0-5 ness. compressed air. man lying on rescues, and chance of the their heads ning stun- surface ned. The dispatcher pel his mate out, and then v hi practiced knowledge, could get ou himself. But the gauge in the tor pedo room- showed that they were Iying beneath forty feet of water They could not guess her they from torpedo wi whi such a depth. They were certain that dive a crane would come and raise the wreck in the hope that men might be alive in it. That would take many hours—a day, perhaps, or two d ‘The torpedo room might leak and f If it did they would wait until the last possible moment. and then the torpedo tube. The chamber seemed staunch and water-tight. But would it prove gas- tight when the it water had reached the acid in the battery roem next to them and had released the deadly chlorine gas? They resolved that at the first choking breath of chlorine they would make for the torpedo | tube. But they could detect no odor of chlorine, although they guessed the salt water must have mingled with the acid. They could look into the battery room. The door between had a glass window. By flashing their light into the chamber they could seé that it was .half full of water. Thus forty-five minutes passed A blinding flash of an eerie blue and frightful crash and boom arose. The steel vault trembled. The bat- teries had exploded. Salt water and acid had engendered a fearful cloud of chlorine and hydrogen. An elec- tric spark had detonated .the hydro- it K AT THE ATLANTIC SIX MEN WENT DOWN WITH HER, THREE LOSING THEIR LIVES AND THRE! MIRACULOUS AND THRILLING | strange, menacing gen. < TWELVE HOURS AFTER THE FIRST SINKI DIVERS HAD TO DO THEIR WORK chaged it from the stage carpenter of fmente of Amecions Bamatlaed, " MORE. ALL OVER AGAIN, AND IT END OF THE PANAMA HAVING to the door. had not brok weird and s continued to burn with a oar and with far hydroge half-filled dartings In the the ssion 14 chamber great em fire as it arose, ed and danced ov, face of the wate sight has ever tom of the se; room emitted ense, 3 the acid mixed with water The heat abated as th down until it was 1 ghostly sional fi ere T) lead-lined tank but not water for d ere afraid of had no food. dded. fire burn ore than r. The m ere was wat, in the torpe sty now. ey reasoned that tions they would be out for forty-eight hours. expiration of that time t not raised to the the hulk we surfa They eight-hour w since the O torpedo tu d dow: flash at its 1 watched it. e ho by they found the iz f the hands unh ¢ ceased look agonizingly 1 hammers Talk ds of the roo were two, played drumming dancin of 8 welve hours first hoist was m Then the joxpus something suap and the O-3 on the bottom again. She settl an even keel now and the fmpri nen were more comfortable Hour after hour passed in silent, mov dismal The wait understood 1f some difficulty had been encountered by the ho that night & upon them and t to wait until daybreak to continue. By the twentfeth hour imprisonment B were in torment. had become mouths were The ti still hou and silenc During the thirty-first hour a diver was again heard alongside. Cl were placed again. a jerk, the 0-5 was raised and moved steadily upward. Sunlight, air, th upper world! But the joy of the spirit was t red with ches of the flesh. The me rejoiced with swelling g but had to endure the pains that come to those who pass quick v air to free air. That was small dis comfort, though, after the ghastly terrors they had endured tune the sinking the The boat ros hear; settled 10 prisoners ionge less, ccssion men ster: ey were compelled Brow: - pressure zing and their €d with thirst, of moveless ba daybreak p; d after ho w a the two rescued dness, MADE. BUT FAILED. THE TOOK THEM TWENTY HOURS