 |
 Dedication
Ceremonies:
Monument of the Soldiers of the War of the Revolution, October
14, 1897 with addresses by
· Major-General Daniel Butterfield
· Mrs. Katherine R. Wolcott Verplanck and others
originally published by J. E. and R. E. Dean, Fishkill, NY
from the Fishkill "Times"
The ceremonies connected with the dedication
and unveiling of the Continental Soldiers' Monument near Fishkill,
on Thursday afternoon, October 14, 1897, were very interesting.
The weather was perfect and made the exercises especially enjoyable.
The services were to begin at half-past two, and by that hour
a company of fifteen hundred or two thousand people had assembled
on the grounds. The monument was covered with a large flag. Back
of it, but within a few feet, had been erected a large platform
containing chairs. On this platform were seated many of the members
of Melzingah Chapter, DAR; representatives and delegates of the
order from Poughkeepsie, Newburg, Kingston, and other places,
besides prominent men of this and adjoining counties. Mrs. Samuel
Verplanck, Regent of Melzingah Chapter, was the real presiding
officer, though the Rev. A. P. Van Gieson, D.D., of Poughkeepsie,
introduced the speakers and made the announcements. The St. Luke's
band, of Matteawan [present-day Beacon], composed of string and
brass instruments, played patriotic and appropriate airs. There
were present, by special invitation, the members of Howland Post,
GAR.
The ceremonies were begun with prayer by the Rev. A. H. Huizingah,
pastor of the Dutch church. Dr. Huizingah made an eloquent and
patriotic prayer, earnestly invoking the spirit of our Revolutionary
ancestors to be awakened and remembered by all and live anew in
their hearts.
Dr. Van Gieson then in a few well-chosen words introduced the
Orator of the Day. In this introduction the chairman told of his
intimate acquaintance with a young man, Strong Vincent, who entered
the Union army in the War of the Rebellion, and who, after the
first three months' service, when reenlisting, brought to him
a beautiful young woman, asking him to marry them, which he did.
This brave and gallant officer, while heroically defending his
position on Little Round Top, at Gettysburg, was killed. He spoke
very often of his serving under a commander for whom he had great
esteem and love, and of whose bravery, skill, and ability he had
frequently spoken. That commander he would now introduce to the
audience, in Major-General Daniel Butterfield, who had risen through
every grade to win the rank of Major-General, to command divisions
and army corps, and gained the Medal of Honor from Congress for
gallantry at the battle of Gaines's Mill. [Applause.]
The cornetist of the band blew the bugle call for the old Third
Brigade of the Fifth Corps, to which the gallant men used to sing
the General's name. This brigade had fought many and all its battles
under General Butterfield's command in the Civil War until the
General was promoted from it.
General Butterfield became deeply affected during the remarks
of Dr. Van Gieson. It was with great difficulty that he restrained
his emotions, and a tear was trickling down his cheek. He said,
in a broken and sad voice, that he had come prepared to address
the large assemblage in a manner he thought appropriate to the
occasion; but that he had not expected, nor was it within the
spirit of the occasion, to enter into the war that saved the Union,
or personal compliment. The allusion to one of the bravest and
truest officers who ever served under him, or he had ever known,
and one whom he sincerely loved and always remembered with affection,
had completely for the moment unmanned him.
(General Butterfield stated to friends on the platform after his
address that he truly loved General Vincent, who earned his promotion
after he was wounded on the second day at Gettysburg; and that,
wounded himself on the third day at Gettysburg, he was carried
on a stretcher to General Vincent's bedside, and received Vincent's
dying message to Mrs. Vincent.)
· address of Major-General Butterfield :
The occasion of our assemblage today associates so many matters
of historical interest and patriotic pride, that one pauses to
weight the rich material against the allotted time for our purpose.
The portion of the country around the old village of Fishkill,
and for many miles in its vicinity, was the scene of stirring
events during the period of the Revolutionary War.
The precise spot where we are assembled has its particular historic
interest, since in 1776 the Council of Safety of Fishkill caused
to be erected, at Washington's request, barracks, built by the
militia of the town, and also a hospital. The barracks were in
the fields, all along to the village, in front of the memorial
we are here to dedicate; the hospital and cemetery behind it.
The memorial carries the dates 1776, the year of its foundation,
and 1783, which latter was the year of removal. Houses in Fishkill
yet standing, one on Main Street, near the Poughkeepsie road,
were build from the timbers taken down in the removal of the barracks.
The purpose of these barracks, to care for the guard covering
the depot of supplies and the invalid soldiers of Washington's
army, and why it was so chosen, is best described by General the
Marquis de Chastellux, a French officer and nobleman of distinction,
in his book of travels. He was here in 1780. He says of Fishkill,
that it had been long the principal depot where were placed the
magazines, hospitals, workshops, etc., of the American army, all
of which formed a town of themselves, composed of handsome, large
barracks, built in the wood, at the foot of the mountains -- this
very spot.
I quote his language, where he says: "As for the position
of Fishkill, that it was a post of great importance is evident
from the campaign of 1777. It is clear that the plan of the English
was to render themselves masters of the whole course of the North
River, and thus to separate the Eastern and Western States. It
was necessary, therefore, to secure a post on that river. West
Point was made choice of as the most important to fortify, and
Fishkill as the place best adapted to the establishment of the
principal depot of provisions, ammunition, etc.; these two positions
are connected together."
He speaks of the politeness shown him, describes the barracks,
speaks of the prisoners in English uniform whom he saw through
the windows of the prison, and then speaks of the huts occupied
by some hundreds of soldiers near Fishkill on his road to West
Point. This description, written by a foreigner of distinction,
and a soldier of high honor, gives the key note of the character
and sufferings of the men whose memory we are here to honor."
The same character of testimony is found repeated in different
language in the official reports of officers and the private letters
and correspondence of hundreds who were of that army, who occupied
the camps and barracks at West Point, Cold Spring, Constitution
Island, and other points within an hour's ride of where we now
are.
In his descriptions of the soldiers in these huts, he says: "These
invalids are all in very good health, but it is necessary to observe
that in the American army every soldier is called an invalid who
is unfit for service. Now these had been sent here because their
clothes were truly invalids. These honest fellows were not even
covered with rags; but their steady countenances, and their arms
in good order, seemed to supply the defect of clothes, and to
display nothing but their courage and their patience."
FRENCHMAN'S SURPRISE
Speaking afterwards of West Point and its fortifications, he says:
"A Frenchman would be surprised that a nation just rising
into notice should have expended in two years upwards of twelve
millions of francs in this desert. He would be still more so,
on learning that these fortifications cost nothing to the State,
being built by the soldiers, who received not the smallest compensation
and who did not even receive their stated pay."
His translator, an English gentleman, who had also visited our
armies at that time, adds to this statement of the marquis: "The
zeal, perseverance, and honor which shone forth in the American
army, in the most arduous and extraordinary circumstances, almost
surpasses credibility. They were in general most wretchedly clothed,
seldom received any pay, were frequently in want of everything,
from the public scarcity of money and the consequent indifference
of the contractors, and had daily temptations thrown out to them
of the most alluring nature. This army seemed to be pervaded but
by one spirit, and fought and acted with as much enthusiastic
ardor as the most enlightened and determined leaders."
These were the words of foreigners, not Americans. We may well
be proud of these tributes to the men we honor today.
But we must cease to quote and repeat what others said of these
men, else we should occupy time for hours.
Of these you can read for yourselves: from Lossing, in his "Field
Book of the War of the Revolution;" from Bailey, the local
historian, who has published a most valuable collection of historical
data of Fishkill's early history; from Blake, in his "History
of Putnam County;" from Philip H. Smith's "History of
Dutchess County," and another by James H. Smith; from the
valuable historical sketch of Fishkill by T. Van Wyck Brinckerhoff;
from Barnum's "Spy Unmasked;" republished with illustrations
and an appendix; all these are full of interesting information
apropos of the work done by the patriots of '76 here and in the
locality around us.
We have no clash of arms and roar of battle to describe here;
but we are to honor that sturdy manhood and patriotism which caused
brave men to bear their sufferings heroically and with patience
for the sake of their country and for liberty.
Let us choose, rather, to treat this occasion, then, in the spirit
of the sentiment which prompted the ladies of the Melzingah Chapter
of the Daughters of the American Revolution in the erection of
this memorial -- graceful recognition of the patriotism and sacrifices
of the noble men who served as soldiers in the War of the Revolution,
and local pride and patriotism in preserving the memory of such
noble work as a reminder and object lesson to those now in ignorance,
and who may follow us in the future.
EFFORTS IN CONGRESS
Twice have I caused to be introduced in Congress a bill looking
to the carrying on of this work in the government, the same as
we are engaged in; twice failed, but shall try again. [Cheers.]
It might, perhaps, be deemed an extravagant sentiment to say that
every inch of ground made sacred by the footprints of a solder
of the American Revolution should be identified for the benefit
of succeeding generations. But it is not too much to hope that
every place where there occurred any important incident of that
historic struggle should be deemed worthy, at least, of some monumental
tablet or memorial. [Applause.] The number of people who, by reading
this inscription, will have their attention for the first time
directed to the story of which it may give a fragment cannot be
foretold. How few persons among those of our fellow citizens,
even of the men and women, boys and girls, who may pass this tablet,
have caught the spirit of the seven years' struggle from 1776,
the troubles that led up to it, and the problems that followed
it; the armies of Washington in camp, on the march, and in actual
battle; how they were raised, how they were maintained, and how
they suffered, exemplified in a military sphere; the burdens and
sacrifices of the homes; the anxieties of the fireside; the problems
of social order in the States; and the many embarrassments of
our different States.
...more...NOT ALWAYS HOPE
There was seldom unity, not always success: usually poverty, and
not always hope; but, somehow, there was progress. It now lay
here, a battle won there, and now and then a fresh incentive from
a patriotic home, an awakened Stqte legislature, a fresh trust
in the genius and the capacity of a general or a statesman --
and many of our best statesmen were officers in the field; an
American determination to strive on and on until armed resistance
to our new government should disappear from our shores: all contributed
to keep the young republic on its feet until the Old World began
to receive the new nation into the family of nations, and then
to enter into treaties with it of commerce and of amity.
Every incident connected with the birth of the new nation is ripe
with inspiration and instruction for succeeding generations. Every
monumental tablet is a seed of patriotism fraught with silent
and continuous instruction. [Applause.] It tells the casual stranger
something to interest him as he passes by; it reminds the youth
that there is something to learn about events of which he will
be ashamed to remain in ignorance; and it admonishes the indifferent
or the careless that the questions of today, which are idly tossed
from his mind as belonging to, what he may style, the intrigues
of politics, or the craft of politicians, are as fraught with
great possibilities of national retrogression or nation advancement
as were in their day the questions so happily solved by the wise
fathers of the republic in the stormy days attending the American
Revolution. And these students, if so incited to study and know
the history of our beloved land, and Heaven grant they may, cannot
but feel, as they read the fertile pages of the history of those
days, the most profound astonishment that that partially developed
young colony, in the audacious onslaught for liberty and the rights
of man against an unjust tyranny, displayed such an aggregate
of almost superhuman effort and accomplished such mighty results.
Well might the astonished commander of the English forces, with
superior numbers in his favor, exclaim in his wrath at defeat:
"What are these men made of?"
If it be true that a nation, like the human body, is healthy in
proportion to the purity and strength of its blood, then the blood
that nerved the arms and developed that army of patriots, and
now speaks to us with trumpet tongues from this sacred soil which
today we dedicate, was the healthy, pure outcome of God-given
strength.
A SHADE OF THE OLD CONTINENTAL SOLDIER INVOKED
Oh, could a shade of the spirits once here, arise from yonder
field now, this day, and look upon us as we stand in reverent
discharge of what we feel sacred, American, patriotic duty, what
would he see, and what, think you, would he say?
Let us, for the moment, invoke this shade and spirit of the soldier
of the Revolution. Let him come forth from the soil sacred by
sufferings and the bloodshed of his comrades, hallowed by patriotism
and sterling worth.
Lo! he comes, ascends to the hills and redoubts where burned his
camp fires and the beacons on the Hudson; where patriot fires,
lit by Washington's orders, made American hearts pulsate with
thrilling emotion, their glowing light telling victories won for
American arms, and the evacuation of our great city of New York.
[Applause.]
We see him now. What a spectacle! What a memory! What a reverie!
What does he look like? Is he well fed? Look at his gaunt figure,
his half-famished body! Is he well clothed? Look at his poor bruised
and frozen feet swathed in tow cloth tied with strings of tow!
Look! How pitiful to see the poor frost-bitten fingers, the clothing
of rags and coffee bagging. It caused the huts and barracks here,
that were thrown up to protect him from the relentless elements.
But we pause as we gaze on this sight. His countenance beams with
the glories of his patriot's duty well done. It is beautiful,
and sheds a halo that takes from our vision the marks and emblems
of his suffering.
LO! HE IS GLORIFIED
Lo! he is glorified! Like our Divine Master, he has conquered.
He has long since overcome human frailties and soared above human
necessities.
From the beacon heights, as he looks down, he finds all nature
stands in its outline, much as it did four centuries ago, when
Columbus stood knocking at the convent door for food and shelter,
arguing, imploring for three poor vessels with which to sail from
the port of Palos to find that New World St. Brendin's tales had
told of and taught him he would find. He finds all nature just
as they did a century and more ago, when, with the chain across
the Hudson, and the troops posted on both its banks, as L'Enfant
pictured them in 1780, our army stood like Vikings to guard the
coveted pass through the Highlands.
He sees there no camps, the forts on Constitution Island and Fort
Putnam in ruins, Fort Webb surmounted by an observatory, and Fort
Clinton gone.
But there are beautiful barracks and edifices: a towering granite
shaft, with its golden figure of Fame, glistens in the sun, and
tells, as a battle monument, of heroes slain in the war to preserve
and defend what he fought for and created -- the war that our
veteran comrades here before me fought in. We know nothing by
comparison of what the Revolutionary patriots suffered.
SEES OLD LANDMARKS
Dimly he descries the north and south redoubts at "Garrisons.
The Robinson house, the home of the traitor Arnold, and from whence
he fled, has gone; yet its site is preserved, marked by the foundation
walls.
The path by which Arnold fled down to the Hudson to join the British
"Vulture" is still there, and the memory and dishonor
of his treason yet fill every heart.
There are houses with the portraits of the woman Washington was
said to love, and whom he scorned when seeking André's
pardon. Others with Washington's portrait as the young colonel,
when he visited Beverly House. All these homes, and others, are
filled with hearts now beating and pulsating with patriotic blood,
and have been homes of statesmen, cabinet ministers, ambassadors,
and representative men.
The swift-flying railway trains and steamers are new and unknown
to him.
He looks along the road hither, and finds the Huestis house, where
Washington met Luzerne, the French Minister, and, turning back
to Fishkill, without knowledge of the treason, gave Arnold time
to escape his just fate. He sees the redoubts still guarding the
gorge on the road near the old Haight house, the dividing line
between Dutchess and Putnam Counties. Huts and barracks are gone.
He sees here his old camp ground and the Wharton house, where
headquarters were, where often Washington came, and where Enoch
Crosby was brought for his mock trial.
Yonder he sees the old Dutch Church, not now a prison, but well
preserved, devoted to its original uses, like the Episcopal Church,
its neighbor, which was once a hospital, and where the Provincial
Congress of the State assembled. The piles of dead comrades that
filled the streets there are only a memory.
He sees the Matthew Brinckerhoff house, east of the village, where
the gallant Lafayette was so long ill and suffering. He looks
along the road to Glenham for the shop of Bailey, where patriotism
forged the sword of victory for Washington. The house has gone,
but the sword is treasured by the country. [This sword is now
in the Patent Office in Washington.] Yet beyond, he sees the Verplanck
house, where the Society of the Cincinnati was formed. He sees
the old stone house on the south side of the road, the Scofield
house, where Baron Steuben, whom all the soldiers knew, had his
headquarters. He sees the old Osborn house on the hill, beyond
which was the outpost of the encampment. He sees the old Ackley
house, where the Committee of Safety met.
HESSIANS ARE COMING
His head droops. He seems to think. He sees again a moving column.
His eyes are aglow. He straightens up his manly but gaunt figure
with pride. 'Tis the Hessians and others of the army of Burgoyne,
captured at Saratoga by Gates, who were paroled to go to Boston
and be shipped to England; but Congress has set this aside, and
they are being marched back from Hartford, through Fishkill, and
across the ferry to Newburg [sic], to be sent south.
He starts at sight of us here on his old camp aground. His strong
and manly face is stirred with the memories of the scenes of his
time. There is determined power in his features, every one of
which seem charged with the memories of a keen and varied life
passed with the army of which he was a part.
As the declining sun throws its long shadows across the meadows,
his quick ear catches the sound of the evening gun from Washington's
Headquarters, at Newburg [sic]; midst the homes of the gallant
"Orange Blossoms;" and from further down the river,
at West Point, the harmonious strains of the music of parade,
the beat of drum and sound of trumpet are echoed by Cro' Nest
and the old gray hills as they reëchoed the martial music
of Washington's army.
Soldiers march forth, bearing the flag he fought for. Its stars
are increased, indicative of growth and strength of almost imperial
States. It is not the old Continental uniform of blue and buff
he sees, but he finds splendid soldiers in training to lead the
hosts who will ever defend and fight for that flag and uphold
the Union his comrades in arms established and achieved. [Applause.]
They honor and salute the flag, and again the evening gun of West
Point causes the natioinal standard to be furled and guarded for
the night, while all heads are uncovered, and with the strains
to its glory all thus honor the flag.
He sees we have not forgotten the lays that cheered his comrades'
hearts in those dreary days of privations and suffering of a hundred
or more years ago.
What are his feelings as all these scenes pass before his memory
and his vision and he looks down upon us here today? He sees in
those beaming faces everywhere visible our tributes of gratitude,
and that this spot is sacred because of the valorous dead, who
achieved so much, who achieved everything for us. He recalls the
invocation and prayer of the pastor of the old Prison Church,
that the spirit of our forefathers be with us and upon us, and
he sees your Dr. Huizingah's eloquent prayer is answered.
OUR SHADE VANISHES
As we unveil the memorial he reads there, beneath the arc of the
thirteen stars, carved in granite, commemorative of the thirteen
original States, these graceful words of patriotism and gratitude,
penned by the estimable lady, Mrs. Verplanck, Regent of the Melzingah
Chapter, so prominent and efficient in the work and the effort
that has caused this assemblage and this ceremony. [Applause.]
Remember these words. They tell him, and they tell you and all,
the story of the days and events we commemorate.
Listen to them:
In grateful remembrance of the brave men who gave their lives
for their country during the American Revolution, and whose remains
repose in the adjoining field, this stone is erected by Melzingah
Chapter, Daughters American Revolution, October 14, 1897.
Our shade has vanished. He has recognized the spirit and the work
here. Heaven bless Melzingah Chapter of the Daughters of the American
Revolution. Blessings upon every Chapter or Association of devoted
and patriotic women who institute or aid such work. May their
example spread over the land until no spot or incident of that
grand struggle remains without some mark to perpetuate the memory
of its good and its glory for mankind. [Applause.]
Let us join together and erect a monument to the Continental soldier
as he was in the days we commemorate, and place it on the bank
of the Hudson. Let us mark the noble Lafayette's home in his hours
of sickness and suffering for us. [Cheers.]
May the study of those historic days be constant and pervading,
and the solutions of the problems of our own day and generation
be facilitated, the national necessities better appreciated, the
people become better qualified as Americans, and learn how, in
the language of the Preamble to the United States Constitution,
"to establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide
for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure
the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity."
[Hearty applause.]
...end
Mrs. Verplanck, Regent of Melzingah Chapter, unveiled the monument,
delivering the following address:
· address of Mrs. Verplanck :
Mr. Chairman, Daughters of the American Revolution, Members of
all Historical Societies, and friends:
On the 14th of October, 1776, one hundred and twenty-one years
ago today, this peaceful, quiet little village of Fishkill, then
composed of only fifty houses, was the scene of great excitement;
for an armed encampment was established here, to continue during
those long years of struggle for American freedom. This, as we
have been already told, was one of the most important military
posts of the army, guarding, as it did, the passes of the Highlands
north of West Point, thus preventing the British from reaching
Burgoyne at Albany, and also enabling our generals to keep up
communication with the New England States. Over there in the village
stands old Trinity Church, and within its walls a hospital was
established, to which the sick and wounded were brought from many
miles around. Nearby were the barracks where the soldiers were
encamped; and who will depict the horrors of that camp when, in
hunger and cold, with no food and clothing, our heroes gave up
their lives? Here, in this field, close to where we are now gathered,
those who died in yonder barracks and hospital lie buried. Hundreds
of unmarked graves surround us; no headstones recall their resting
places; and oh! the pathos of it, no names are preserved to us.
But He who stirred those hearts to loyalty and patriotism has
their names recorded in the Book of Life, and in His good time
will their virtues be proclaimed and their works applauded. These
grand old hills on the 14th of October, 1776, stood forth in all
their autumnal glory, even then as now; and during those years,
when battles were being fought at Stony Point and elsewhere, our
glorious Hudson River flowed majestically onward to the sea, even
as we see it in our day. Time is
but a span; and though generations have come and gone, and changes
of necessity have taken place, yet much remains the same -- these
mountains; this old post road, with its milestone before us; even
that old Dutch church, where Enoch Crosby the spy was imprisoned,
reared its spire heavenward more than a hundred years ago, as
we see it now.
In 1883, at the time of the Centennial exercises held here in
Fishkill, it was proposed that a suitable monument be erected
to mark this burial ground. The subject was ardently discussed
at the time, and has continued to be a matter of profound interest
to many of our townspeople; but, in all modesty let me say that
until the women descendants of the heroes of the American Revolution
took the matter in charge, no memorial stone has ever been placed
here to commemorate the dead. [Cheers.]
But now no longer may historians rebuke us; for, through the courtesy
of Mr. Albert Knapp, the owner of this land, of the Highway Commissioner
in permitting the placing of this stone on this spot, through
the great kindness of our friends in aiding us financially, and
helped by the sympathy of the whole community, we now, as members
of the Melzingah Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution,
lift this flag from off this memorial stone which we this day
dedicate in grateful remembrance to those brave men who gave their
lives for their country, and whose bodies repose in this adjoining
field. [Warm applause.]
The following original hymn, written for the occasion by James
E. Dean, was then sung by the assemblage, accompanied by the band,
to the tune of the Portuguese hymn, Mr. Charles Secor leading:
· Hymn: All Hail to the Heroes... :
originally published by J. E. and R. E. Dean, Fishkill, NY
from the Fishkill "Times"
All hail to the heroes who died for our country
And found at the foot of this mountain a grave!
Their trials and sorrows, their pains and privations,
Were the price of our freedom -- then honor the brave.
They came from the hills and the vales of New England,
They came from the north and the sunny southland;
Thus gathered these hardy and honest young yeomen
To fight for the right at their country's command.
They watched and they waited, they fought and they labored,
They suffered privations no tongue can relate.
The valiant and true, by platoon and battalion,
Here closed their sad eyes and surrendered to fate.
The land they so nobly redeemed from oppression,
The fairest and freest in all the broad earth,
Should cherish the treasure their valor has bought us,
Remember their labors, and think of their worth.
Forget not the patriots who died for their country,
Whose forms at the foot of this mountain were laid;
They fought and they suffered with courage and patience,
And grudged not the price which for freedom they paid.
END of Hymn
Rev. Dr. Van Gieson arose and said: "Forget not the patriots
who died for their country." To the speaker this was a sacramental
occasion. He made an earnest appeal to the people not to forget
the men who laid down their lives for us. The Hudson River valley
was the great strategic battleground. If the British in their
efforts had gained control of the Hudson River, the Revolution
would have been crushed. It was the great effort of Washington
and his forces to prevent this, and they did it. This monument
is an educating and inspiring force to the young. The speaker
then paid a fine tribute to the patriotism of women. In closing
he quoted Lincoln's closing words at the great dedication at Gettysburg:
But in a larger sense we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate,
we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men...who struggled here
have consecrated it far above our power to add or detract...It
is for us, the living rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished
work which they who lie there have thus so nobly advanced. It
is rather for us to be dedicated to the great task remaining before
us; that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to
that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion;
that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died
in vain; that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of
freedom, and that government of the people, by the people, and
for the people, shall not perish from the earth.
Mrs. Mary I. Forsyth, of Kingston, State Regent, was expected
to be present and make and address, but could not come. The following
letter from her was read by Mrs. Verplanck:
· Letter from Miss Forsyth :
from the Fishkill "Times"
Kingston, N.Y., October 12, 1897
My Dear Friends:
My heart will be with you at the time of your gathering on Thursday.
It is a great disappointment to me to find it impossible to meet
with you. You are to carry out at this time just what I hoped
you would do when I proposed the formation of your Chapter. You
are quickening in your community a sense of responsibility to
your historic past. I congratulate you heartily, and am really
more than gratified by what you have accomplished in this short
time that has passed since your organization. As the years go
on, the work you have done and are doing will tell upon public
sentiment even more than it does today. The next generation should
be more intelligent, more truly patriotic, through these efforts.
May God continue to bless what you do for the Nation "In
His Name." With a cordial greeting to each member of your
Chapter, I am, faithfully yours,
Mary Isabella Forsyth, State Regent
[Applause.]
"America" was then sung, all joining, after which the
Benediction was pronounced by the Rev. Joseph H. Ivie.
The guests then repaired the grounds of the famous and historic
old Wharton house nearby. The house was thrown open to the inspection
of visitors. The room where Enoch Crosby, the spy, was tried by
the court martial; the room occupied by General Washington, and
other points of interest in the house were freely shown to visitors.
The ladies of Melzingah Chapter had provided a bountiful lunch
on the lawn of Wharton house. In the closing hours of a most beautiful
October day the assemblage dispersed, and with heartfelt thanks
to the Melzingah Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution
for their patriotic work, and congratulations upon the great success
attending the occasion.
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