He looks as if he's saying, "Good Lord, where did that come from?" That was my response upon finally noticing this statue of Major General Gouverneur Kemble Warren right opposite the Grand Army Plaza greenmarket.
And what drew my eye was not Warren, but this lovely backdrop of forsythia and daffodils...
...framed above by chartreuse tree clusters and below by these charming dandelion-like guys.
"Everything with him was subordinated to duty," states the plaque beneath the statue. G.K. Warren led Union troops heroically at Gettysburg (where he saved Little Round Top) and a half-dozen other major battles. But Warren spent the rest of his distinguished postwar career trying to rehabilitate his reputation after being relieved of his command late in the Civil War. (Warren, an engineer, had been criticized as overly cautious and deliberate.) It took until 1879 for a court of inquiry to exonerate Warren--and the results were not published until after his death in 1882. Warren died in Newport, Rhode Island, and was buried there at his own request in civilian clothes and without military honors.
The best view of the statue is from behind; from here, Warren appears to glower directly at the Quadriga atop the Grand Army Plaza arch, erected to the glory of the Union defenders he led bravely, if not boldly enough for the brass of his time.
Warren's decades-long tale of overshadowed glory, along with his flinty determination and engineer's attention to detail, find an echo in the life story of his baby sister, Emily. You may have heard of her; she married one of Warren's engineering staffers, a chap named Washington Roebling.
Since Warren was responsible for their introduction, perhaps he should be turned around 180 degrees to gaze toward a certain bridge.
BOB GUSKIND MEMORIAL 'ADOPTABLE CUTIE OF THE WEEK'
Since I didn't recruit a Greenmarket Dog of the Week this weekend, I'd like to introduce something even better: An adoptable dog of the week! The recently lost and much-missed Brooklyn blogger Robert Guskind used to do this feature on his Gowanus Lounge blog, and I felt compelled by Natasha the Pug, a Craigslist cutie, to take up the banner at least once. According to Windsor Terrace-based New York Animal Rescue:
Natasha is a ten year old Pug...she is spayed, dewormed, treated with
Revolution to prevent fleas, ticks, ear mites and heartworm and is up
to date with vaccinations. She is very friendly and gets along really
well with kids. Her adoption fee is $200.00 and she'll get one free
exam at our vet's office, one free month of pet health insurance and a
microchip. If you'd like to adopt Natasha please email us at
nyanimalrescue@yahoo.com for an adoption application.
As the godmother of a middle-aged lady pug, I can assure you that life with Natasha will involve a big payback of snuffly adoration for the care and love you give her!