USA > Massachusetts > The Massachusetts Society of the Sons of the American Revolution with the National and State Constitutions 1893 > Part 11
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CHAPLAIN.
Rev. CARLETON ALBERT STAPLES Lexington.
BOARD OF MANAGERS.
JAMES MADISON BARKER
Pittsfield.
BENJAMIN APTHORP GOULD
Cambridge.
CHARLES HICKS SAUNDERS
Cambridge.
WILLIAM BUTLER CLARKE
Boston.
JOHN HOMANS, 2d
Boston.
REUBEN LAW REED .
Acton.
WALTER LINCOLN BOUVÉ
Hingham.
DANIEL SANDERSON LAMSON ALFRED SEELYE ROE
Worcester.
MOSES GREELY PARKER .
Lowell.
NATHAN WARREN
Waltham.
LEVI SWANTON GOULD
Melrose.
CHARLES ELISHA ADAMS JOSEPH ALBA DAVIS
Lowell.
Jamaica Plain.
GORDON DEXTER
Boston.
Weston.
THE HISTORY OF THE SOCIETY FROM OCTOBER, 1893.
THE fall field-day of the Society for 1893 was held at Marblehead on the 19th of October, a special train leaving the Eastern depot at 9:45 A.M., carrying one hundred members and ladies. On arriving at this ancient and historic town, the Society found the town clerk and selectmen awaiting them, and taking barges, visited the spots particularly associated with the Revolution; as, the monument erected to the memory of Captain James Mug- ford, the old fort, the powder-house, the burying-ground, St. Michael's Church, and the homes of General Glover, Colonel Lee, Colonel Orne, and Captain Mugford -the interesting features of which were duly pointed out by the gentlemen who had kindly volunteered their services. Several members of the party also visited Mrs. Richard Lyons, a granddaughter of John Roads Russell, one of the members of Glover's regiment, whose profile was cut on the statue dedicated at Trenton this day, as one of the figures representing the part Massachusetts took in the campaign of "the Jerseys."
At the conclusion of the drive, which had occupied nearly three hours, a meeting of the Society was held in Abbot Hall, Dr. E. J. Forster, the first vice-president, in the chair; S. Arthur Bent acting as secretary pro tem. The Rev. C. A. Staples, chairman of the committee on a marker of Revolutionary graves, presented the design which was printed and described in the book of the Society for 1893. On motion of Capt. Nathan Appleton, the design was accepted. It was voted that fifty such
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markers be purchased by the Society, to be given to towns applying for them for examination and adoption.
Captain Appleton, the third vice-president, presided at the collation which was then served, and introduced the speakers, all of whom "were to the manner born." The Hon. James H. Gregory, who during the forenoon had acted as the spokesman of the local committee, re- ferred at length to the history of Marblehead in the Rev- olution and of the services of her sons by land and sea, saying that she had more men on the ocean than on land during that struggle, and that it was on account of the privateersmen that the merchants of England asked for a cessation of hostilities. A letter was then read from the Hon. Samuel Roads, Jr., the historian of Marblehead, who had been invited to address the Society upon " Mar- blehead in the Revolution." Unable to be present, he sent a brief sketch of Marblehead in the war, speaking particularly of the career of Gen. John Glover and of the celebration at that moment in Trenton, New Jersey. It was announced that the following telegram had been sent to the presiding officer: "The Massachusetts So- ciety of the Sons of the American Revolution assembled this day at Marblehead, the home of Glover and his marine regiment, send greetings to their compatriots at Trenton, and congratulations on the glorious anniversary they are celebrating." Short speeches, mainly referring to the part Marblehead had taken in the Revolution, were made by Charles H. Litchman, Capt. Knott V. Martin, who commanded one of the first companies to report at Faneuil Hall in the War of the Rebellion, and the Rev. Messrs. Priest and Sleeper. The committee who pre- pared this very successful field-day were Messrs. Warren, Appleton, Bent, Kimball, and A. W. Clark.
At the meeting of the Board of Managers on the 9th of November, it was voted to give one copy of the book of the Society, then ready for distribution, to all mem- bers who had paid their dues, and that the price of extra
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copies to members be two dollars and the postage. On motion of Dr. Forster, it was voted that the Board of Managers present a petition to the Legislature, asking that the 19th of April be substituted for Fast Day as a legal holiday.
At the meeting of the managers on the 15th of Jan- uary, 1894, the Committee on Publication received the thanks of the Board for the manner in which they had prepared the book of the Society. Messrs. Warren, Apple- ton, and Bent were appointed a press committee. Messrs. Howe, Lodge, and Lamson were appointed a committee to investigate the best means of procuring the publication of the Revolutionary documents now at Washington. It was voted that the president, with such others as may desire to accompany him, appear before the Judiciary Committee of the Legislature to advocate the substitution of the 19th of April for Fast Day as a legal holiday.
At the meeting of the managers on the 3Ist of March, it was voted to hold the sixth annual meeting at Concord, and the president, secretary, registrar, historian, and Mr. Herbert W. Kimball were appointed a com- mittee of arrangements. The secretary was instructed to communicate to the families of the late Rev. Jonas Bowen Clarke and James Barr Curwen the sympathy of the Society in the death of those valued members.
The sixth annual meeting of the Society was held at Concord on Thursday, the 19th of April, 1894, to celebrate the appointment of that day as a legal holiday in place of Fast Day, to which this Society had so materially contributed. Two cars on the nine o'clock express train to Concord were reserved for members of the Society and their guests, and nearly two hundred gentlemen took part in the anniversary exercises, which were of the most successful and enthusiastic character.
On arriving at Concord, barges were taken for " Battle Lawn," the residence of the president of the Society,
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who had thrown open his house and grounds, that the Society might from so advantageous a position witness the sham fight on the historic battlefield of the "North Bridge." Enveloped in the smoke of this bloodless car- nage, the members enjoyed President Barrett's generous hospitality, then slowly moved in the barges past the bridge, with its statue and monument, past "the Old Manse," and through the densely crowded streets, lined with substantial residences handsomely decorated for the occasion, to the Unitarian church, in which the business meeting and the collation were to be held. It was very gratifying to the Society to observe in the old burying-ground the graves of many Revolutionary soldiers honored with the newly adopted marker, which to the number of seventy-five had been put in position the day before by our fellow-members resident in Concord.
The sixth annual meeting was called to order at noon by President Barrett, who proceeded, after the call of the meeting had been read by the secretary, to deliver his annual address, as follows :
Members of the Society of the Sons of the American Revolution :
In fixing upon the place for holding the sixth annual meeting of our Society, your Board of Managers decided that inasmuch as Concord had never received that honor, it would be particu- larly appropriate on this one hundred and nineteenth anniver- sary of the " Concord Fight " to hold its meeting here, and in this historic meeting-house, where the Provincial Congress had held its sessions, the last one on the 18th of April, the day before the battle - one hundred and nineteen years ago yesterday. Where could there be a more appropriate place for the meeting of a society whose aim is purely patriotic ; whose object is to keep alive the memory and deeds of our Revolutionary ances- tors, and to hand down to our children's children the record of their heroic services ?
Your Board of Managers have held nine meetings during the year, and have faithfully and carefully considered the interests of the Society, and I am happy to report that our work in a practical way has exceeded that of any previous year. The issue
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of the Society's sketch book has proved very satisfactory to our members, and received many compliments from other State societies, and has proved a valuable addition to Revolutionary annals. I would recommend that from time to time we publish additional volumes.
The marker, adopted by the Society at its meeting in Marble- head, on the 19th of October last, to mark the graves of Revo- lutionary heroes, is of handsome design and very creditable to the committee having the matter in charge, and I trust will be very generally adopted by other State societies. Some have already signified their intention to use it. The Act of 1884, Chapter 42, gives authority to towns to grant and vote money for this memorial purpose, and your Board of Managers voted to notify towns of the existence of this law, and to ask the selectmen to bring the matter before their respective towns ; however, the notices were too late for many towns who held their meetings early, and but few towns moved in the matter. · Lex- ington, Acton, and Weston appropriated money for this purpose, and to-day these towns will mark the graves of their Revolu- tionary heroes with the marker of this Society. I would urge this work upon the patriotic members of our Society, and all who are interested. It is a great and noble design to mark these graves before their locality is lost, but it requires the persistent effort of public-spirited and patriotic men to carry out a purely sentimental work. Where towns refuse to appropriate money for this pur- pose, the money can be easily raised by subscription, or, failing in that, I would recommend that our Society supply the markers on application of the selectmen of the town, or some responsible person who takes an interest in this patriotic work. Another important matter has engaged the attention of your Society the past two years, - the abolition of Fast Day, and, in the place of this, establishing the 19th of April as a legal holiday. We were the first society to move publicly in this matter. On May 9, 1892, your Board of Managers passed a vote that a committee of thirteen be appointed to agitate the matter, of which Capt. Nathan Appleton was chairman. On June 8, 1892, a petition was presented to His Excellency Governor Russell, signed by the officers of this Society, asking for the establishment of the 19th of April as a legal holiday. The Governor's reply was received on the 13th of June, addressed to your president, saying he had referred the matter to the judiciary committee,
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with his approval. A bill was brought in last year, but failed of its final passage. We again this year pressed the matter upon Gov- ernor Greenhalge, who earnestly urged it in his inaugural address to the Legislature, and a committee from this Society, consisting of the president, Messrs. Staples, Howe, and Parker, of the Board of Managers, appeared before the judiciary committee on January 30, 1893, and earnestly advocated the abolition of Fast Day and the substitution of the 19th of April as a legal holiday. Other societies and individuals also pressed this mat- ter upon the attention of the judiciary committee, notably the Lexington Historical Society. The date of our organization was on the 19th of April, 1889, and certainly the day is fruitful enough in historic memories to warrant its being desired as a public holiday by the people of Massachusetts.
On Memorial Day many of the towns decorated the graves of Revolutionary soldiers with the American flag with the letters S. A. R., in accordance with a vote of the Board of Managers, and I trust this custom will be further extended through all the towns. It has also been voted by the Board to recommend that tablets bearing the names of Revolutionary soldiers be placed in town halls or other conspicuous places.
The congress of the National Society was held in Chicago, June 16th and 17th, and our Society was represented by its delegates.
A great interest is being aroused in matters pertaining to the Revolution. New patriotic societies are being formed and old ones strengthened, all tending to foster the patriotism of the people, the preservation of Revolutionary archives, and the marking of historic places.
The annual reports of the registrar, Nathan Warren ; the treasurer, Dr. Charles M. Green; and the historian, S. Arthur Bent,-were read, accepted, and ordered placed on file. The report of the registrar showed a member- ship of four hundred and thirty-nine, of whom nineteen were Sons of Revolutionary soldiers. Fifty-four were added during the year. The report of the treasurer gave the receipts to have been $1,445.32, and the expendi- tures $1,385.31. The necrology of the year reported by the historian included the names of some of the oldest
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and most valued members of the Society - twelve in all - including two members of the Board of Managers : James B. Curwen and Edwin F. Waters.
The following delegates and alternates to the conven- tion of the National Society, at Washington, on the 30th inst., were then elected : Delegates. - The Hon. Henry Cabot Lodge, Edwin S. Barrett, Nathan Appleton, Levi S. Gould, Charles M. Green, M.D., Herbert L. Bur- rell, M.D. Alternates .- Edward J. Forster, M.D., the Hon. William A. Richardson, William D. Richards, Richard F. Barrett, Thomas S. Phelps, Robert A. Blood, Alfred S. Roe, Allan Rogers.
Mr. Archibald M. Howe offered the following resolu- tion, which was adopted :
That it is the opinion of the Massachusetts Society, S. A. R., that it is not expedient at this time to build a national building in Washington.
Mr. William B. Clarke reported from the nominating committee a list of officers for the ensuing year, which will be found elsewhere.
On motion of Mr. A. S. Harris, it was voted that the secretary cast one ballot for the Society, and the gentle- men nominated were declared elected.
Mr. Archibald M. Howe declined to serve longer on the Board of Managers, and his resignation was laid upon the table.
Captain Appleton offered a resolution, which was adopted, suggesting to the City Government of Boston the propriety of marking the graves of Revolutionary soldiers in the city cemeteries.
A vote of thanks was given to the retiring registrar and secretary, and to the president for his entertainment of the Society that morning.
The following committee was appointed to nominate officers for the ensuing year: The Hon. Charles H. Saunders, Allan Rogers, the Rev. Charles L. Hutchins, Nathan Warren, Henry A. Willis.
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At one o'clock the company, now about two hundred in number, went to the vestry, where dinner was served. A few ladies there augmented the gathering. At the raised table with President Barrett sat Gen. John C. Breck- inridge, U. S. A., president of the District of Columbia Society; the Hon. Winslow Warren, Collector of the Port of Boston; the Hon. Mellen Chamberlain, of Chelsea ; the Rev. Grindall Reynolds, secretary of the American Unitarian Association; Curtis Guild, Jr., of Boston ; Dr. Charles M. Green, of Boston; the Hon. Charles H. Saun- ders, ex-Mayor of Cambridge; Capt. Nathan Appleton, of Boston; and Judge John S. Keyes, of Concord.
Immediately after dinner the president rose and read letters regretting their absence from Governor Green- halge, the Hon. Henry Cabot Lodge, the Hon. Chauncy M. Depew, the Hon. William A. Bancroft, the Hon. J. Q. A. Brackett, the Hon. Roger Wolcott, Charles F. Trumbull, secretary of the Connecticut society, and Henry Hall, of the New York "Tribune."
Then, after a few words of welcome, President Barrett introduced the Hon. Winslow Warren, president of the Society of the Cincinnati, who said :
It is just about a year ago that, in company with delegates to the triennial of the Society of the Cincinnati, I visited your his- toric town. We were kindly received by the president of your Society, and I now take the opportunity to thank him for the reception on behalf of our society. The visit to him was memorable. In his company were two delegates, once Con- federates, and there was a sort of revival of the Revolutionary feelings.
Mr. Warren read letters pertaining to the events of the Revolutionary period, one of which was written by his grandfather, a member of the Provincial Congress, who wrote :
" I hope one thing will follow another till America shall appear before the whole world."
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But, said the speaker, turn to the town of Dedham. On the day of the fight at Concord a messenger was despatched to Ded- ham. He reached the town, gave the alarm, and four military companies mustered in the different parishes, - three hundred men out of a population of two thousand, - so that practically every able-bodied man of Dedham started for Concord on that day. Twenty-three towns, at least, are known to have taken part in the fighting before the astonished and worn-out British soldiers reached the town of Boston. Such are the scenes which this day, now wisely made a holiday, recalls. To you is handed down a great trust, - to keep alive the spirit of the Revolution. As a member of an older society, I rejoice in your new-found strength.
There cannot be too many of them to perpetuate these memories, if they keep well in mind the purposes of their organization. They are select bodies, in the best sense of the word, because they represent the highest aspirations and the holiest associations of American freemen. To them is given in charge especially to spread the feeling of true Americanism, not in any party or proscriptive way, but that Americanism which stands for high principle, for sound methods, and for democracy founded upon the virtues of its people. There is need of it, gentlemen. The future of America is not clear. We are working out a great principle, but are surrounded with dangerous quicksands, and for our success as a nation is needed all the patriotism and all the wisdom that a study of the doings of the fathers of the republic can possibly furnish. Time was when our people of Massachusetts were of one blood. We have been absorbing new elements, many of which are strange and alien to our form of government ; and whether or not we can safely assimilate these new elements depends largely upon the virtue and constancy and labor of men who can feel in all its intensity the real meaning of our Revolution. Gatherings like these are pleasant to see, and they are useful in bringing together men of common ancestry and common purpose ; but the test is in the evidence you may furnish in your daily work, in your political action, in your performance of ordinary duties of American citizenship, of your appreciation of the responsi- bility your glorious descent imposes on you all. See to it, gentlemen, that these societies have a real meaning ; that each and all of you shall illustrate, in his own way, the principles of
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those days which cemented this union of States; that this republic shall grow in wisdom with its growth in power, and the future shall be securely based upon the immutable idea of jus- tice to all men and a freedom which shall not degenerate into a wild license of democracy.
The president then introduced Gen. Joseph C. Breck- inridge, of Washington, who said :
Ladies of this Grand old Commonwealth, Men of Massa- chusetts, Mr. President, and Compatriots all :
I would that the choice had fallen upon some one more skilled in the art of oratory for an occasion like this, instead of upon a simple soldier, when another holy day is added to the calendar of liberty, and the very choicest flower of Southern sympathy should be brought and presented to such an audi- ence, - selected from among those in whose veins the fires of patriotism, as well as the blood of those early martyrs, must throb with an undying instinct for freedom ; and the ultimate results of that spring day's struggle now are to be measured by faith and prophecy, as well as by the priceless glories that already crowd upon our beloved country.
This is a simple bit of scenery we have here, familiar in every detail ; and what plain, matter-of-fact people were the actors here less than a century and a score of years ago. One must enjoy the very sight of such a scene as the heart sings with the radiant delights of the season. They were the country folk of their day, and unwittingly they bore in their hardy hands the highest hopes of human destiny ; and they were attending to nobody's business except their own ; though they gave all they had, their lives, and apparently hopelessly ; but it was in favor of one of those few causes that are superior to human life ; and who among us to-day (as so many here present have) would not glory to have our names numbered among "those few im- mortal ones who are not born to die." It was here that glory waited them ; that purest glory that cannot be gained by seek- ing, but must come graciously, unsought, to crown a duty nobly done without fear, favor, or hope of reward. " Aye, there's the rub." It is just here we touch the very spirit's throne of this imperious scene ; the throne from which it conquers the rapt
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and reverent attention of all mankind. The men called Amer- icans who died here were the proto-martyrs of a cult and nation which unfalteringly bears aloft a rare devotion to " liberty with law," and finds no sacrifice too great, nor service too arduous, in the name they have placed next to that " Name which is above every name and to which every knee shall bow." Those who have died for this cause and country may have " builded better than they knew," but they knew they did all they could. And with what they did we are content. To us is given their torch of truth, to carry it onward and keep its flame alight.
An Oriental might well exclaim to us: "Loose the sandals from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground." Certainly it is not less holy because it is homely and wholly our own. There are some things to which the men of this cold climate, and perhaps colder generation, are still devoted ; and one thing they love, is liberty, and this is its shrine, "where loyal hearts, and true, stand ever in the light," and those who died are blest ; here the fires of free- dom are perpetual, and can never fail while such hearts as these are true to God and native land. Where to find peace for the soul we know, and we seek such holy peace for both soul and body as may be honorably found ; but we have never found "life so dear, nor peace so sweet, as to be pur- chased at the price of chains and slavery." So said our fathers, and so say we; to this, these fields in all their calm delight cry aloud in proof, to which the heavens and earth reëcho now - forever ! This nation lives for no other cause, and our children are as ready as our fathers were, to die for it. As freedom is right, we adhere to it. Those who love monarchs are free to follow them. There is no neutral host, for those who are not against us are for us. The narrow bridge between life and death is here. And if man must die by the hand of his fellow- man, is there any better place than this or better cause ?
As Greece was to the Hellenes, so New England now centres all America. Old Syracuse, on the island of Sicily, might seem pretentious and engage the attention of the world, and challenge with Hiero and Archimedes comparison with any potentate or philosopher ; or Ephesus, with its Diana, and with artists and wealth excelling all other nations, might claim preëminence for the nonce; but the mind of man gets new birth from Athens only ; from thence is our renaissance, and even Athens'
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incomparable glory is condensed into a century and a score of years, - a term as short as our great national life. To men of our race and day the broad Atlantic is no more than was the Mediterranean to those old Greeks of mighty mind. It is from them alone our fathers took their precedents ; and on this field can we dare ask if they could find "copy now for men of nobler blood and teach them how to war "?
The farmers and artisans who fought here on the day we celebrate were the vanguard of a mighty host, and steadily since that day sons of New England have led the van in arts, in song, in arms, in oratory, in literature, in industry, in thrift, "in all the qualities that do become a man,"- and there has been no measure to their success. In conscience, as in labor, they are supreme. Hence, as this imperial republic grew, their "power and potency " also had full growth, until to-day the Pleiades, in their sweet influences, are not more glorious in the heavens than the sister stars of New England's galaxy in the starry union of Old Glory, " with freedom's banner floating o'er us." The universal Thanksgiving Day, Forefathers' Day, and now Patriots' Day, are added to the other customs which have become national to their extremest details, and indicate how we are all led willing captives to the men of Massachusetts. To them, knowing full well the unheralded merits in leadership and unquestioned quality and valor of the proud men of my own clime, I come from my Southern home to say, as to men of equal merit : All hail, most worthy men; Sons of liberty, all hail ! and in token true I offer you my hand and heart to-day.
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