In the Public Gardens, in the Back Bay district, across from Commonwealth avenue, may be seen one of the largest pieces of statuary in America, and, according to some connoisseurs, the handsomest in Boston. This is Ball"s huge statue of Washington, which measures twenty-two feet in height. The statue was unveiled in 1869, and it is said that not a stroke of work was laid upon it by any hand of artisan or artist outside of Ma.s.sachusetts. The Beacon street side of the Public Gardens contains another famous statue--that of Edward Everett, by W. W.
Story. Other great citizens whose memory has been perpetuated in life-like marble are Samuel Adams, William Lloyd Garrison and Colonel William Prescott. The Emanc.i.p.ation Group is a duplicate of the "Freedman"s Memorial" statue in Washington. The soldiers" monuments in Dorchester, Charlestown, Roxbury, West Roxbury and Brighton commemorate the unnamed, uncounted, but not unhonored dead who laid down their lives on the battlefields of the Civil War.
"The bravely dumb who did their deed, And scorned to blot it with a name; Men of the plain, heroic breed, Who loved Heaven"s silence more than fame."
An interesting object is the Ether Monument on the Arlington street side of the Public Gardens erected in recognition of the fact that it was in the Ma.s.sachusetts General Hospital--in the face of terrible opposition and coldness and discouragement, as history tells us, though the marble does not--that Dr. Sims first gave the world his wonderful discovery of the power of ether to cause insensibility to pain.
That there should be so many of these fine pieces in Boston"s parks and public places is matter for congratulation but scarcely for surprise. As a patron of music, literature, art and all the external graces of civilization she has so long and so easily held her supremacy that one is half inclined to believe that at least a delegation of the Muses, if not the whole sisterhood, had exchanged the lonely and unappreciated grandeur of Parna.s.sus for a seat on one of Boston"s three hills. The Handel and Haydn Society, the oldest musical society in the United States; the Harvard Musical a.s.sociation; the famous Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Orpheus Club, speak--and right musically--of Boston"s love for the art of which Cecilia was patron saint. Music Hall, an immense edifice near Tremont street, is the home of music in Boston.
Here the symphony concerts are held weekly, and here all the musical "stars" whose orbit includes Boston make their first appearance before a critical "Hub" audience. Its great organ, with over 5,000 pipes, is one of the largest ever made.
The idea of a national university of music--sneered at and scouted when a few enthusiasts first talked and dreamed of it--took shape in 1867 in the now famous New England Conservatory of Music, founded by Eben Tourjee. It is a magnificent school in a magnificent home--the old St.
James" Hotel on Franklin Square--with a hundred teachers from the very foremost rank of their profession. The conservatory has possibly done more for New England culture than any other influence save Harvard University.
The literary life of Boston needs neither chronicler nor comment. Such men as Thomas Bailey Aldrich, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Francis Parkman, Prescott, the historian, Longfellow, Lowell and countless others who, living, have made the city their home, or, dead, sleep in its chambers of Peace, have cast a glamour of books and bookmen and book-life around her until her t.i.tle of "The Athens of America" has pa.s.sed from jest to earnest. The earliest newspaper in America was the Boston _News Letter_; and to-day its many newspapers maintain the highest standard of "up-to-date" journalism in the dignified, not the degrading sense of the word. Boston is indeed a "bookworm"s paradise," with its splendid free lending library and low-priced book-stores, making access to the best authors possible to the poorest. The _Atlantic Monthly_, which for so many years has occupied a place unique and unapproachable among American magazines, is published here.
Art is represented by the magnificent Museum of Fine Arts, with its beautiful exterior and interior decorations and fine collection of antiques and art objects; the Art Club, the Sketch and the Paint and Clay clubs, as well as by the innumerable paintings and statues appearing in public places; by the Athenaeum, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Boston Society of Natural History, the Warren Museum and the Lowell Inst.i.tute free lectures.
To draw this brief study of Boston to a close without mentioning her countless charities would be a grave omission, since these form so large a part of the city"s life and activities. As is always the case in great towns, two hands are ever outstretched--that of Lazarus, pleading, demanding, and that of Dives--more unselfish now than in the days of the parable--giving again and yet again. Boston"s philanthropists flatter themselves that _there_ the giving is rather more judicious, as well as generous, than is frequently the case; and that "the pauperizing of the poor," that consummation devoutly to be avoided, is a minimized danger.
The "Central Charity Bureau" and the "a.s.sociated Charities" systematize the work of relief, prevent imposture and duplication of charity, and do an invaluable service to the different organizations. Private subscriptions of citizens maintain the work, which is carried on in three fine buildings of brick and stone on Chardon street, one of which is used as a temporary home for dest.i.tute women and children. The Ma.s.sachusetts General Hospital--which, save for the Pennsylvania Hospital, is the oldest in the country--the Boston City Hospital, the New England Hospital for Women and Children, and a number of other finely-organized inst.i.tutions care efficiently for the city"s sick and suffering. Orphan asylums, reform schools, missions of various sorts, and retreats for the aged and indigent, are numerous.
One of the most unique and interesting among these charities is "The Children"s Mission to the Children of the Dest.i.tute," which aims to bring the little ones of these two sadly separated cla.s.ses, the poor and the well-to-do, in contact for their mutual benefit. By its agency the forlorn little waifs of the streets are provided with home and friends, religious and secular instruction, and employment whenever necessary or advisable. Still more unique is the Ma.s.sachusetts Charitable Mechanics"
a.s.sociation, whose vast building and hall on Huntingdon avenue occupies an area of over 110,000 square feet. As early as 1795 this a.s.sociation was founded to extend a helping hand to mechanics in difficulties, to establish libraries and cla.s.ses for apprentices, offer premiums for inventions and improvements in trades, and give every encouragement to the tradesman. The building is a beautiful as well as a vast structure, and eight thousand people can be seated in the grand hall. The mechanics" festivals, fairs, and exhibitions of industry are held here from time to time, when there is much awarding of medals, prizes and honors.
On Boston"s commercial greatness there is no s.p.a.ce to touch. Nor is it needed. Could her schools, her churches, her charities, her inst.i.tutions, public and private, which have here been outlined, flourish without the backbone of Puritan thrift and the framework of prosperity which have made her one of the wealthiest of cities? The solid business foundation is apparent to all who visit her teeming marts and exchanges. But the "power behind the throne" is kept with rare judgment in the background; and when the visitor comes to kiss the hand of the "Queen of the Commonwealth" he sees only her chosen handmaids--Ambition, Culture, Philanthropy, Religion. On these, finally, she rests her claims to greatness.
CHAPTER III.
LECTURE AT TREMONT TEMPLE.
Lecturing in the towns I purposed visiting was an after consideration of secondary importance--a sort of adjunct to the journey and the objects I had in view. It was thought that it might afford some facilities for meeting large numbers of people face to face in the different sections of the country through which I designed to pa.s.s, and thus enable me the better to learn something of their social customs, industries and general progress in the arts of civilization.
The subject decided upon for the lecture was "Echoes from the Revolution," and was intended to be in keeping with the spirit of the Centennial year. The fact that I had been a cavalryman during the War of the Rebellion and the novelty of an equestrian journey of such magnitude would, I estimated, very naturally awaken considerable interest and a desire on the part of many to hear what I had to say of the heroes of "76."
My lecture was a retrospective view of the leading incidents of the Revolution, with especial reference to some of the st.u.r.dy heroes and stirring scenes of that most eventful period in American History.
Briefly referring to the causes which led up to the war, I started with the Ride of Paul Revere from Boston the night before the Battle of Lexington, and closed with the Surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown.
It was not my wish or intention to derive any pecuniary benefit from my lectures; but being a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, and thoroughly in sympathy with the aims and benevolent projects of my soldier friends, it was proposed to donate the proceeds to the Relief Fund of that patriotic organization.
Fully equipped, the weather favorable and roads in good condition, I was anxious to begin my journey early in May. It was therefore arranged, as previously suggested, that I should lecture at Tremont Temple on the evening of May eighth under the auspices and for the benefit of the G.
A. R. Relief Fund.
The subjoined fraternal and highly complimentary letter of introduction from Captain Frank M. Clark of New York was received by the committee of arrangements soon after my arrival in Boston.
4 IRVING PLACE, _New York, April 20, 1876_.
TO COMRADES OF THE G. A. R.:
I have been intimately acquainted with Captain Willard Glazier, a comrade in good standing of Post No. 29, Department of New York, Grand Army of the Republic, for the past eight years, and know him to be worthy the confidence of every loyal man. He is an intelligent and courteous gentleman, an author of good repute, a soldier whose record is without a stain, and a true comrade of the "Grand Army." I bespeak for him the earnest and cordial support of all comrades of the Order.
Yours very truly in F., C. and L., FRANK M. CLARK, Late A. A. G. Department of New York, G. A. R.
I may add that, as this was the first occasion of any importance on which I had been expected to appear before a public a.s.semblage, I was strongly recommended to deliver my initial lecture before a smaller and less critical audience than I was likely to confront in Boston, and thus prepare myself for a later appearance in the literary capital; but I reasoned from the standpoint of a soldier that, as lecturing was a new experience to me, my military training dictated that if I could carry the strongest position in the line I need have but little, if any, concern for the weaker ones, and hence resolved to deliver my first lecture at Tremont Temple. I was introduced by Captain Theodore L.
Kelly, commander of Post 15, Department of Ma.s.sachusetts, G. A. R., and was honored by the presence on the platform of representatives from nearly all of the Posts of Boston and adjacent cities. In presenting me to my audience Captain Kelly spoke in the following terms:
"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN: It gives me pleasure to have the honor of introducing to you one who, by his services in the field and by the works of his pen, is ent.i.tled to your consideration, and the confidence of all comrades of the "Grand Army of the Republic." I desire to say that he comes well accredited, furnished with the proper vouchers and doc.u.ments, and highly endorsed and recommended by the officers of the Department of the State of New York. Though young in years, his life has been one of varied and exciting experience. Born in the wilds of St. Lawrence County, New York, his education was drawn from the great book of Nature; and from his surroundings he early imbibed a love of liberty. His early a.s.sociations naturally invested him with a fondness for adventure and excitement and when the call of war was heard he at once responded, and enlisted in the Harris Light Cavalry, with which corps he pa.s.sed through many exciting scenes of march and fray. His experience amid the various vicissitudes of the war, in camp and field and prison, have been vividly portrayed by his pen in his various publications. Still inspired by this love of adventure, he proposes to undertake the novelty of a journey across the Continent in the saddle. His objects are manifold. While visiting scenes and becoming more familiar with his own country, he will collect facts and information for a new book, and at his various stopping-places he will lecture under the auspices and for the benefit of the "Grand Army of the Republic," to whose fraternal regard he is most warmly commended. Allow me then, ladies and gentlemen, without further ceremony, to present to you the Soldier-Author, and our comrade, Willard Glazier."
I was much gratified on the morning of the ninth to find commendatory reference to my lecture in the leading journals of Boston, for I will frankly admit that I had had some misgivings as to the verdict of the critics, and rather expected to be "handled without gloves" in some of the first cities on the programme. Of the dailies which came to my notice the _Globe_ said:--
"A very fair audience considering the unfair condition of the elements, was gathered in Tremont Temple last night to hear Captain Willard Glazier"s lecture upon "Echoes from the Revolution." The frequent applause of the audience evinced not only a sympathy with the subject, but an evident liking of the manner in which it was delivered. The lecture itself was a retrospective view of the leading incidents of the Revolution. It would have been unfair to expect to hear anything very new upon a subject with which the veriest school-boy is familiar; but Captain Glazier wove the events together in a manner which freed the lecture from that most unpardonable of all faults, which can be committed upon the platform--dulness. He pa.s.sed over, in his consideration of the Revolution, the old scenes up to the time when Cornwallis surrendered up his sword and command to George Washington. "The year 1876," said Captain Glazier, "re-echoes the scenes and events of a hundred years ago. In imagination we make a pilgrimage back to the Revolution. We visit the fields whereon our ancestors fought for liberty and a republic. We follow patriots from Lexington to Yorktown. I see them pushing their way through the ice of the Delaware--I see them at Saratoga, at Bennington, at Princeton, and at Monmouth. I follow Marion and his daring troopers through the swamps of Georgia and the Carolinas;" and in following them up, the lecturer interspersed his exciting narrative with sundry droll episodes. Treating of the battles of Trenton and Princeton, he expatiated upon the devoted heroism of John Stark, and briefly traced his career until, at Bennington, Burgoyne"s victor announced to his comrades, "We must conquer to-day, my boys, or to-night Molly Stark"s a widow." One battle after another was handled by the lecturer in a pleasing manner, showing that he was thoroughly familiar with the subject he had chosen for his theme. After speaking in a most zealous manner of the troops on land, Captain Glazier remarked: "Our victories on the ocean during the war of the Revolution were not less decisive and glorious than those achieved on land. John Paul Jones and the gallant tars who, under his leadership, braved the dangers of the deep, and wrested from proud Britain, once queen of the sea, that ill.u.s.trious motto which may be seen high on our banner beside the stars and stripes."
"Captain Glazier made special mention of the naval engagement between the Bon Homme Richard and the British man-of-war Serapis, which took place in September, 1789. He described in glowing words the fierce nature of that memorable contest, until the captain of the Serapis, with his own hand, struck the flag of England to the free Stars and Stripes of young America. Captain Glazier has elements in him which, carefully matured and nurtured, will make him successful on the platform, as he has already proved himself in the field of literature. He has a strong and melodious voice, a gentlemanly address, and una.s.suming confidence. He was presented to the audience by Commandant Kelly, of Post 15, Grand Army of the Republic, in a brief but eloquent speech. Captain Glazier will start on his long ride to San Francisco, from the Revere House, this morning, at 9.30, and will be accompanied to Bunker Hill and thence to Brighton, by several distinguished members of the "Grand Army,"
and other gentlemen, who wish the Captain success on his long journey from Ocean to Ocean."
[Ill.u.s.tration: LEAVING THE REVERE HOUSE, BOSTON.]
The lecture proved a success financially, and in fulfilment of my purpose I donated the entire proceeds to the Relief Fund of Posts 7 and 15, as I was largely indebted to the comrades of these organizations for the hearty co-operation which insured a full house at Tremont Temple.
The letter below was addressed to the a.s.sistant Adjutant-General of the Department.
REVERE HOUSE, _Boston, Ma.s.sachusetts, May 9, 1876._
CAPTAIN CHARLES W. THOMPSON, A. A. G. DEPARTMENT OF Ma.s.s., G. A. R.
COMRADE: I find pleasure in handing you the net proceeds of my lecture, delivered at Tremont Temple last night, which I desire to be divided equally between Posts 7 and 15, G. A. R., of Boston, for the benefit of our disabled comrades, and the needy and dest.i.tute wards of the "Grand Army," Gratefully acknowledging many favors and courtesies, extended to me in your patriotic city,
I am yours in F., C. and L., WILLARD GLAZIER.
My letter to Captain Thompson elicited responses from the Posts to which donations were made, and the following from the Adjutant of John A.
Andrew, Post 15, is introduced to show their appreciation of my efforts in behalf of their Relief Fund.
POST 15, DEPARTMENT OF Ma.s.sACHUSETTS, G. A. R., _Boston, May 12, 1876_.
CAPTAIN WILLARD GLAZIER:
COMRADE: In obedience to a vote of this Post, I am pleased to transmit to you a vote of thanks for the money generously donated by you, through our Commander, as our quota of the proceeds of your lecture in this city; and also the best wishes of the comrades of this Post for you personally, and for the success of your lecture tour from sea to sea.
Yours in F., C. and L., EDWARD F. ROLLINS, Adjutant of Post.
It is only justice to the comrades of Posts 7 and 15 to say that on my arrival in Boston they were most cordial in their reception, most zealous in their co-operation with my advance agents and most solicitous for the success of my journey and its objects. In short they were true comrades in the best sense of the term, and my delightful sojourn in their generous and patriotic city was largely due to their numerous courtesies.
CHAPTER IV.