[MSN] Nathan Hale statue recovered in Chaplin

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 Nathan Hale statue recovered in Chaplin
By: Lee Sawyer , Journal Inquirer

COVENTRY - Nathan Hale's statue is in police custody today, recovered 
from the town of Chaplin with the help of an anonymous tipster.

He is in good condition, except for being broken at his base, police said.
The bronze likeness of the national hero was taken sometime before April 
5 from the Nathan Hale Homestead. The homestead was closed for the 
season, and police aren't exactly sure when the statue was taken.
Police Chief Mark A. Palmer said the department received a tip Thursday 
that the statue was in Chaplin near a fishing area next to the Natchaug 
River.
Police located the statue there, and are arranging to return it to the 
Homestead, which is operated by the Antiquarian and Landmarks Society of 
Hartford.
No one has been arrested, and police still are looking for the culprit, 
they said.
Rochelle Simon, a society spokeswoman, said that no one had tried to 
claim the $1,000 reward that had been offered by an anonymous benefactor 
for the statue's return.
She said the group is grateful to the police for their work, and thanked 
news organizations for publicizing the theft, perhaps resulting in the tip.
As for the statue, "It's in good shape, except that it's missing its 
feet. We're obviously going to have a restoration process," she said.
Nathan Hale was born June 6, 1755, and was a captain in the Army during 
the American Revolution.
Considered America's first spy, Hale went on an intelligence-gathering 
mission before being caught by the British and hanged.
He is widely remembered as saying, "I only regret that I have but one 
life to lose for my country."
Renowned New England sculptor Bela Lyon Pratt created the 3-foot, 
approximately 100-pound statue.
Pratt, born Dec. 11, 1867 in Norwich, studied at the Yale School of Fine 
Arts and became an instructor at the Boston Museum School of Fine Arts.
President Theodore Roosevelt commissioned him to redesign two gold 
coins, the Indian-head half-dollar and the eagle quarter.
Pratt also has pieces in the Library of Congress, Museum of Fine Arts in 
Boston, Harvard University, and the state Capitol.
The homestead will open for the season May 12.

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