Statue from Syracuse Receives Snub Here

A 200 pound statue from Syracuse University paid a brief visit to Harvard Saturday, and then wandered down to M.I.T.

But the University's official greeters, who usually hasten to welcome important guests to the Yard, were not on hand to greet this one. In fact, authorities at Fogg Art Museum refused to have anything to do with the white marble bust of Charles Tallman, 15th century Syracuse, New York, utilities magnate, even though it is valued at $1,000.

A Statue on Tour

The saga of the statue began last Tuesday, when it was dug up by a bulldozer a Hamilton, New York, after it had disappeared from Syracuse University. Frank Still, who was driving the bulldozer, took the bust to the home of Edgar J. Snitcher, on whose property he was working, and left it on Snitchler's front porch.

Snitchler then set out to find the origin of the bust, which was undamaged except for a small scratch over the left one. The only clues were the inscription on the front of the statue, "Charles Tallinn 1810-1881," and the name of the clutter and the date of completion of the work on the back, "Prof. R. H. Park 1879."

Snitchler immediately suspected that the statue had arrived at his farm as the result of a college prank, with the culprits burying the statue on his property when it became "hot."

But Snitchler turned to the wrong college. He called in experts from Colgate University. Colgate Associate Professor of Fine Arts Alfred R. Krakusian agreed with Snitcheler that the bust was typical of those which are wont to decorate college buildings. But Colgate Archivist Howard D. Williams dashed their hopes. He reported that there were no reports of either Tallman or Park at Colgate at the time the statue was carved.

Before Snitchler could track down the origin of the statue further, it was stolen from his front porch on Thursday night.

Harvard Snub

Two days and almost 300 miles later, the bust turned up in Cambridge. First it went to Fogg Museum. But officials there would have nothing to do with it. But, as a consolation prize, the statue got to pose with John Harvard in the Yard.

Then, snubbed by Harvard, the bust moved to M.I.T., where it wound up on the steps of Tech's Walker Memorial Hall. There an art-loving janitor took it in tow, and presented it to puzzled M.I.T. officials, who had absolutely no idea where Charles Tallman came from, who he was, or what to do with him.