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Show 'taIL 'Historical Quarterly parate from the $18,135 costs for the bronze statUf! d a counteroffer to Dallin · nce objected to the meager · of the offer, saying: "The ther needs it." '0 The final allin, seem more incredible · pposition that had robbed ~s. he White Fund, presented ,\'as at once apparent to ~ very little money for his nto bronze by the Gorham lIf the price shown on the . It this final casting was to . ville, Massachusetts), the :ompleting the monument :atue were being prepared ronze foundry. Lawrence · Dallin and His Paul Rel.'cre Statue 37 gangsters over with a big black sedan, and stole the parts from Crabtree [manager of Caproni Galleries] and he said, "I didn't dare stop them. It looked like they had guns and e\"erything." . . . They walked right in. They knew just what they were after and took the essential parts-the horse's head, Paul Revere's arm, Paul Revere's leg. ... I got stuck.... There was a five thousand dollar graft went to somebody on that end of it and over twenty-five thousand graft went on the pedestal. So they got thirty thousand dollars. They got just as much out of it as we did. 8 1 When the newspapers announced on January 6, 1940, that the city of Boston would erect the statue, Lawrence commented: No contract with the White Fund trustees has been signed, but we have agreed upon the price. If they say they want the statue to be unveiled on April 19 [Patriot's Day] I'm afraid they're going to be disappointed. It's pretty much of a rush order to get the bronze cast in such short time. 8 2 The newspaper also reported that "except for one leg of the horse the entire statue is now at foundry of T.F. McGann in Somerville." The Dallins reasoned that to protest this virtual fait accompli would only result in more delays and heartaches. Therefore, they chose to remain silent, conceding to the demands of the unscrupulous officials and helplessly watching as the appropriated funds were skimmed off by undeserving persons. On January 17, 1940, Cyrus E. DaHin, with shaky handwriting, signed a contract with the city of Boston to execute the Paul Revere statue in bronze for the fee of $27,500. The statue would be erected at the Paul Revere MaH between Hanover Street and the Old North Church. s3 This long-awaited victory should have brought continued joy to Dallin in his declining years, but his anxieties were heightened by yet another unexpected tragedy. Dallin's son, Arthur, an artist who had gained local renown for his stained-glass windows for Boston's cathedrals, decided to join the French Foreign Legion at the outbreak of World War II. Arthur who had been born in France while his father studied there in 1898, felt a strong loyalty to that country. While the final prepara. tions for the Revere dedication rites were being made in the summer of 1940, news came to Cyrus DaHin that Arthur was missing in action. It was months after the Revere dedication rites before the sorrowing sculptor knew that his son had been killed in action. The physical and emotional strain affected DaHin's health and mental awareness. 84 Ibid . ., " Cyrus Dallin's Dream of 50 Years Realized." . .. Lawrence Dallin interview; contract in Lawrence DaIlin's possession; Jobn P. Comerford, asSiStant manager, George Robert White Fund, to Rell G. Francis, June 3, 1974. 8. "Boston Sculptor's Son Wins Coveted French War Cross," Boston Globe, October 6, . Il |
