THE STATUE OF MAJOR KEMP.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1766, 3 June 1913, Page 6

THE STATUE OF MAJOR KEMP.

MAORIS DISLIKE IT. •frHEY QUESTION ITS FIDELITV» COURT'S DECISION. (By Teleerapb.—Special Oorresi>ond«nl..) June 1. A case arising out of tho erection of a monument at Wanganui to the late Major Kemp, which has attracted interest, concluded last night at the Palmerston Supreme Court after a three days' hearing, during which some amusing interludes took place. The action was brought by Frank Harris and Co., Ltd. (ill liquidation) and John Gilford Restell (accountant and liquidator of the company) against Rora Hakaraia for .£6OO for work done. There was a counter-claim of JCSSO for refund of moneys paid. In the statement of claim it was set out that, up till September 18, 1912, plaintiffs carried on business as monumental masons at Auckland and elsewhere. By written order, dated July 25, 1911, defendant employed F. Harris and Co. to erect the monument for a sum of .£IOOO. On November 1 defendant employed plaintiffs to place additional inscriptions on the monument for .£l5O, thereby miking the total price ,£llsO. The monument was completed on or before September 2G, 1912. Before proceeding with tho monument, defendant paid plaintiffs .£3OO as a deposit. Since its erection, tho liquidator had received a sum of .£250.

The statement for the defence set out that the monument was not a likeness of Major Kemp; was not made in Italy, but in Auckland; that the baft! of the monument was not 'made of Aberdeon granite, but of Coromandel stone, and that the whole work was badly done; that in October, 1912,'- defendant refused to pay for the monument and entered into a new contract with plaintiffs, in which plaintiffs agreed to re-erect the monument, and to replace the figuro already, constructed with a new one. Plaintiff had neglected to act in accordance with this second contract, and,' therefore, it was claimed that they had abandoned the contract. .In regard to the-counter-claim it was alleged that defendant had paid plaintiffs in all a sum of .£550, and plaintiffs had not performed either, of tho contracts.

Geo. Tuffin, 'caretaker of the gardens at Warn,'mini, said that the Maoris objected to the monument- because it was white. He had been through the Maori AVar with Major Kemp, and thought that tho statue represented tho major. He admitted, however, that, if tho statue were dark, it would look more like Major Kemp. Sculptor's Evidence.

Wm. Henry Feldon, sculptor, of Auckland, stated that ho had' received a photograph of Major Kemp (sitting position), and from that ho prepared a bust in Oamaru stone. He had had experience of the cost of statuary in Italy, and thought that this statue could be purchased for about ,£l3O landed in New Zealand. This would not necessarily be a figure by the best artists. Sir Thomas Brock would probably oharge' ten times as much for the same statue. Witness had prepared plasticene models for tho four battle scenes. The custom was to take negatives from these in bronze. Questioned as to his opinion of the result of the modelling of the panels, witness said that he thought that ho had made a splendid job of them. He was paid .£6O for these and JBI2 or £12 12s. for the bust. The company pressed him to go on with thq statue immediately. He considered tho head a good likeness of the major as taken from the photographs supplied. There had.been great difficulty in making a model from the photographs supplied as there was not a proper profile nor a truo full face in. tho pictures. ■Ho considered that, fTom the material supplied, artists in Italy could not have done better than he did. Witness f had been given six or seven weeks in which to do the work, but he could not finish it in that time. He charged .£42 for his work as far as it had gone. Tho legs, arms, and back had been completed by someone else. He did not see the statue afterwards, but, from a photograph of it, ho thought that everyone ought to be proud of tho monument. Ho would do the whole of the carving of the statue for ,£IOO, so that, a'dding tho cost of the marble, the price would amount to about tho same as that of a statue from Italy. He thought that New Zealand, granites were superior to Scotch or any other granites in every way. The colour was prettier and there was more weight in the stone.

To Mr. Loughnan (counsel for defendant): Tho statue was never modelled in clay at all. It was carved in stone. When his successor took charge tho whole block was "roughed out" by the pointer, or mason.

The bust was produced in court, and Mr. Loughnan handed tho witness two small photographs, and, after looking at these, ho stated that the pose of the fignre, as shown in them, was "rotten." and, if he was responsible for it, he would not expect to be paid. Witness then looked at the enlarged photograph of the memorial, and stated that, if tho smaller pictures were those of the samo statue figure, they were "faked." • "Something Like a Guy Fawke9." A great deal of ovidenco was adduced by defendant. '* William L. Morrison, sculptor and artist, stated that he had inspected tho Kemp statue in company with an assist, ant, who had taken measurements. His impression was that it was what ho would expect a boy to prepare on tho sth of November for a Guy Fawlces. From tho measurement which witness hod taken, tho person who constructed the Kemp statue did not know the proportions of a human figure. For a sft. lOin. figure, such as this, the height of the head should he BJin. instead of lOJin., as was tho case here. The legs'of the figure, from tho knee downwards, were like cylinders, or drainpipes. There was not a particle of likeness between the .photographs and the statue. His first impression of the bronze plates was that of "a number of (lies crawling up a piece of zinc." Till lie looked a little closer the plates produced an absurd effect. He would not pass them as portraying battle scenes.

Denis Seaward, art master at the Technical College at Wanganui. said that he could not refer to one point of artist.io merit in the whole of the statue. The figure was very crude. Tho ,-irms Rave one the impression that, if they hung straight down, they would no): be tho same length. Tho hack of the figure looked like a "sack on a post." • The Finding, The verdict was as follows:— 1. Did the defendant enter into the second contract fully knowing to what it bound her?—^es. 2. Was there an agreement to pay ,£l5O for the letterpress?— Yes. 3. Has the plaintiff company so performed its contract to erect the monument under the contract of July 25?— Yes. •I. 1 Was the .£250 paid on condition that the company should be bound by tho receipt dated October, mil ?—Yes. 5. Was the rcceipt entered into with tho express or implied authority of the plaintiff company?— No. G. What would be tho cost of replacing the figure on the footing of the rcceipt of October 11 ?~.il5(l. . Mr. Fitzherbert then moved for judgment, and asked for costs on tho counterclaim, in addition to the costs of the main acticn.

Judgment was entered for plaintiffs for amount claimed, .€6OO, with interest, thereon at 5 per cent, from* October 11, 1912, to date of judgment, with costs on highest scale, with additional JCIS-. 15s. per day for second and third, and .£4 4s. for fourth day, second counsel three days at .£5 ss. per day, and costs of interlocutory proceedings, also costs to plaintiff company on filing statement of defence to counterclaim, as per scale. i ■ ■ ■

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