Newspaper Page Text
V
■ via* I kvm.no WLLtV/MU'
VOLUME XLIII NUMBER FIVE.
n
ft
ti
~
'fso &
S&b 61
ft
Montgomery .Unveils Tablet Recalling' Notable
Visit of General LaFayette
a m 9 9 •—*•*■*•••*■•• *'*"*■*' 1
By PAUL LINCOLN.
Written for C%* Sunny South
UK southern people are es
sentially patriotic and the
love of a hero is not less
than love of country.
Grateful and appreciative,
there is no stint to their
meed; to them their he
roes are never deqd, and
with each succeeding sea
son they bring fresh lau
rels to deck tlio earth
where they lie and to
wreathe about the monu
ments which mark the
deeds of their valor and sacrifice. And
it makes no difference whence one has
come, what land gave his birth, or the
marks of what race are upon his brow.
But no son of a foreign shore ever re
ceived the devotion, the loyalty and un
tiring homage, which from the first up
to the present time has been so gener
ously accorded Lafayette, the friend of
Washington, and Greene, an idol of a
grateful people. Hardly a southern city
but has a park, a square, a street named
in his honor, or monument erected to
his memory, and still the number grows.
Montgomery, the capital of the state,
than which there is none more patriotic
or chivalric in the union, will, in a few
days, unveil a tablet in memorial of La
fayette’s visit to that city in 1825. The
Alabama state historical department,
which is doing so much to preserve the
history of our country, and particularly
of the south. Is making all possible ef
fort in collecting incidents of tho visit,
man' of which, fortunately, have been
banted down; *m«' or Montgomery’s old
est citions, airs. James Fountain, whose
age is 93, and who recalls the event, was
one of the little girls who strewed flow
ers in the path of the great general—
a custom which seems to have been fol-
lowed in each city where he was enter
tained.
LIKE A COUNTRY ROAD.
Montgomery at this time was little
more tlian a village, and there appears
to have been no public hostelry. The
end of Commerce street, now built up
with large wholesale houses and the
scene of the biggest part of the traffic
and business of the city, was then a
sparsely settled street, if so it might be
called—it was more like a country road
where neighbors lived closer together
than common, and here was the home
of Colonel John Edmondson, whose guest
Lafayette was. The lot on which the
house stood ran through to Coosa street
below the building, adjoining what is now
the First national bank. The famous
old house where the ball was given and
which was only recently torn down, stood
at the corner of Commerce and Talla
poosa streets. Tt was a small two-story
structure, the first floor being used as
a store, and tile second for a public hall.
In its latter days it was unpretentious
enough, but in the twenties, within its
low ceiled wails men who afterwards
made their mark, let fly ambition’s first
arrow, and its rafters rang with the elo
quence of orators and statesmen already
made.
In 1822. three years prior to Lafayette's
visit, a fever for the histrionic appears
to have held the little community in its
throes so violent that the company of
amateurs did not hesitate to undertake
the presentation of "Julius Caesar," and
despite the fact that the hall was not a
theater and other small obstacles of like
nature, but no more deterrent, til" v.lav
"went down,” reported the newspapers
of the day, "to the satisfaction of a nu
merous and splendid audience.” Of the
members of the little company one be
came governor of Alabama, another
United States senator, a third state su-
, 4-t-m99-~9 — 9~9~9~9~.9 — 9 — 9—9—9~9-~9~ 9:.9:-9:-9 —
House in Which La Fayette Ball
promo court judge and a fourth governor
of Georgia.
It was on March 31 Lafayette reached
the banks of the Chattahoochee river,
and here at Fort Mitchell, in Russell
county, he was met by a body of 300
eihrnp, nf Ab-b-m.., ..iLJ
largo number of Indians, who had come
hither to conduct him into the town.
After witnessing a ball game, the part
contributed by the latter to the cele
bration, the party proceeded on its way
to Montgomery, arriving April 3, and
Was Given, Montgomery, Ala.
finding the entire population turned out
in welcome, swelled by hurftlreds from
the surrounding country, the largest
crowd ever assembled in Montgomery, it
is said, up to that time.
They had collected on Goat hill (now
' Capitol lilll.'GoV'min rick, ns mui com.,
from Cahaba, the then capital, and with
all possible enthusiasm they impatiently
awaited the approach of the cavalcade,
which halted in a sand flat about 100
yards from the hill. Lafayette and es
cort, alighting from their carriages and
• 9 C -• 9 9 — 9 ••••#■•■• ••• 9■•■9
horses, tlm proeession was formed, and
as they marehed to the top of the bill
the band played "Hail to the Chief.”
while the pure ardor of patriotism and
grateful affection which lent a strong,
glad note to the cries of welcome that,
rent the air, touched the. heart of the
Frenchman and bound him anew to a
loyal and devoted people.
LAVISH HOSPITALITY.
Alabama's daughters are hospitable to
liie very core of their generous hearts,
and their ready hands never tire of lov
ing ministrations, as they did for Jeffer
son Davis so many years later, so they
did for La Fayette In tiiose earlier days
of the fine little city. From their own
homes they brought of their treasures to
lend comfort and adornment to the rooms
set aside in Colonel Edmondson's home.
There is to he seen today in Montgom
ery a handsome mirror, which was
loaned by Mrs. John Gindrat, and is now
the valued possession of her grand
daughter at her home in Goldtbwaite
street
It was to the residence of Mr. and
Mrs. John Gindrat that LaFayette re
paired on quitting the ball at II o'clock
in the evening, resting before proceeding
on his journey, and conversing the while
with his host, who was a fluent French
scholar. Later in the night he was es
corted by a company of citizens through
the unlighted street,! to the landing,
where, with deep feeling, even with tears,
they bade hi»n goodby. That tour of La-
Fayette's. the long journeying by tire
some stages from one point to another,
how fraught with mingled feeling it must
have been, for if he was met with joyful
accla.m he e is i>M gcdspved with a
fervent sorrow.
On the eightieth anniversary of this
memorable visit to our country, the Ala
bama Son s of the Revolution will, in the
capitol on old Goat Hill, and in the pres
ence of Alabama's representative men
:9»-9»-9 — 9'
■9
and women unveil a fitting tablet to com
memorate the friendship ti> us of France's
noblest son and the undying fealty of our
nation. In the evening a colonial ball
will be given, and doubtless among the
.-ilken gowns and high-he**ied slippers
will bo some that danced with tho gallant
general at that other ball in the upper
story of tlm old Lafayette building, as it
came to be called.
in an old house in Georgia are china
teacups used at the ball and banquet
given Lafayette in Augusta, and in tiie
attic of this house, in an old trunk, a
pair of faced satin slippers, narrow,
pointed and tortuous-looking, exactly the
me shape on either side, and with high
stiff iieel s like little slim blocks of wood.
What the wearer suffered can never be
known—unless an occasion like this pend
ing ball tempt some sweet maid to
squeeze her little natural feet into this
silken inquisition. Gowns worn at tho
ball, too. were long preserved.
The lot on which the Lafayette house
stood is now occupied by the Yirdon
building, a handsome brick structure, one
of the many big wholesale houses which
crowd the river front, and convert into
a busy mart tlie quiet village street
where rested the great soldier in the en
joyment of hospitality as generous and
as fine as greeted him anywhere on these
shores, and on ‘.his building will be
placed the tablet, a handsome memorial,
and one more evidence of Alabama’s lively
patriotism.
BRIDE AT NIAGARA
(From Tlie Baltimore Sun.}
A blushing Virginia bride of 19 stood
beside lmr youthful husband at the brink
of Niagara Falls just as the sun peeped
from behind a loud, -udd by eonvc::
ing the glorious cataract into a great
rearing mass of dazzling white and
throwing a brilliant rainbow through the
mists rising from the yawning chasm be
neath. It was a sight which Dickens
declared indescribable.
"My, but ain’t it cute,” she exclaimed.
q ...9...9-..99 9’*• 9-m-9'*• 999-*-9>m-9••• 9...9...9*'9-a.9...9^'9-*9-.'9-. , 9.*9'.'9+.9... 9'*‘ 9:‘9‘*.9 ••'9:.9:^9 '••9:. 9 :• 9:-9 :• 9-.'9 9 ..9..-999..-9...9-m-9...9-..9...9-..9 * a 9 9 9 9 ■: 9 ..'9 ■.■9:. 9 9-.' 9... 9-.. 9 9...9-.-9••• 9...99 -.'9...9 .. 9.'
9:-9:-9. 9:-9■•■9 9 ■•■9:. 9:. I
John Gaythor and Ufae Galleon ^
By Frank R Stockton
(i — 9 9 ..9 .'9~-9-.-9.~9.*9-~9-~9.+9.* 9
IN TWO PARTS—PART 1.
Copyright, 1903.
OHN GAVTIIER was a gar
dener. and he presided
over a fine old garden be
longing to a fine old house.
He was an elderly man.
and before he settled down,
to the gentle exercise de
manded by his fruits, his
flowers and his vegetables,
lie had been a soldier, a
sailor, a ranchman, and.
for certain periods of his
life, a student. Physically
he was a little less prone
to activity than in days gone by, but as
bis body grew a little indolent, the live
liness of bis mind' increased. He had
a wonderful memory which, like a witen-
haze! twig, in the hands of a man who
searches for hidden springs of water,
would turn and point exactly as John
Gayther wished it. to turn and point, it
is possible that a digger might not find
tlie waters of truth were he to dig
where John Gaytner's memory pointed,
but then, diggers do not always dig.
There was a little house in the middle
of the garden, with a v*jde-outreaehing
roof, and under the shade of this, John
Gayther was sitting trimming pea-sticks,
when there came to him the Daughter
of the House. She was not tall; her face
was very white, but not pale, and her
light hair fluffed itself all about her
head, under her wide hat. She wore
gold spectacles, which greatly enhanced
the effect of her large blue eyes. John
thought she was the prettiest flower
which had ever showed Itself In that
garden.
"John.” said she, "I want some new
plants for my gold-fish. I don’t like
those I have; they’re not pretty, and they
don't last. Can't you get me something
new, something more delicate and fanci
ful, with suggestive tendrils like some
sea-weeds?”
"I'm not much of a water-gardener,”
said John, ”^>ut I have a book which
tells about all those thinfs. I don't
know that T shall find anything in it
about ‘suggestive tendrils,’ but I will find
somethin’, and you shall have it.
"Talkin’ about water-gardens,” he con
tinued, "( wish you could have seen some
of tho beautiful ones that I have come
across; more beautiful and lovely than
anything on the top of the earth, you
may be sure of that. I was reminded of
them the moment you spoke to me about
your gold-fish and their plants.”
“Where were these gardens,” asked the
young lady, seating herself, "and what’
were they like?”
"They were all on the bottom of the
sea in tho tropics,” said John Gayther.
"where llie water Is so clear that with
a little help you can sec everything just
as If it were out in the open air—bushes
and vines all sorts of tendpr, wavin'
plants, all made of sea-weed and coral,
growln’ in tlie white sand; and instead
of birds fly in' about among their branches
there were little fishes of every color—
canary-colored fishes, fishes like robin-
redbreasts, and others you might have
thought were bluejays if they had been
up in the air instead of down in the
water. And now I come to think of it.
there was one particular place where 1
saw more beautiful sights, more grand
and wonderful sights, under the water,
than I believe anybody ever saw before
Would you like me to tell you about it?”
"Indeed I would."’ said she, taking
off her hat.
John now began to sharpen the end or
a p 'a-stiek. "It was a good many years
ago.” said he, “more than twenty, and
J was then a sea farin' man. I was on
board a brig, cruisin’ in the West Indies,
and we were off Porto Rico, about 20
inili>s northward, 1 should say, when we
ran into somethin' in the night—we never
could find out what it was—and we stove
a big hole in that brig which soon began
to let in a good deal more water than we
could pump out. The captain, he was a
man that knew all about that part of the
world, and he told us tliat we must work
as hard as we could at the pumps, and if
we could keep her afloat until he could
run her ashore on a little sandy island
lie knew of, not far from St. Thomas, we
might be saved.”
‘ Didn’t you have any boats?” asked the
young lady.
"No,” said John, "we had sold all of
them about two months before to a Brit
ish merchantman, who had lost her boats
In a cyclone. One of the things our
captain wanted to get to St. Thomas ror
was to buy some more boats. He heard
lit could get some cheap ones there.
“Well, we pumped and sailed as well
as we could, but we hadn’t got anywnere
near that sandy island the captain was
makin’ for. when one inornin' atur
breakfast, our brig, which was pretty
low in the water by this time, gave a.
little hitch, and if we hadn’t been lively
in takin* in all sails there would have
been trouble. But the weather was line
and the sea was smooth, and when we
bad time to think about what had hap
pened we were restin’ on the bottom or
the sea. just as quiet and tranquil as
if we had been a toy ship in a shop win
dow.
“What we had stuck on was a puzzle,
indeed. As I isaid before, our captain
knew all about that part of the sea. and,
although he knew we were In shallow
soundin'*, he was certain that there
wasn't any shoal or rock thereabout that
he c.ould get stuck on.
"We sounded all around the brig, and
found lots of water at the stern but not
so much forward. IVe were stuck fast
on somethin', but nobody could imagine
what It was. However, we w’ere not
sinking any deeper and that was a com
fort, and the captain he believed that it
we had boats we could row to St. Thomas,
but we didn't have any boats, so we
had to make the best of it. He puis
up a flag of distress, and waited till some
era ft should come along and take us
off.
"The captain and most of the crew
didn’t seem to be troubled about what
liaq happened, for .so long as the sea dul
noT get. up they could make themselves
very comfortable as they wore.
"But there were two men on board who
didn’t take things easy. They wanted to
know what had happened, and tlvej
wanted to know! what was likely to
happen next. I was one of these men,
and a stock-broker from New York was
the other. He was an awful nervous,
fidgety, meddlin' sort of a man, who
was on this cruise for the 1 benefit of lu-
health, which must have been pretty wen
worn out with howlin', and yellin', and
tryiir to catch profits like a lively boy
catches Hies. He was always pokin’ Ins
nose into all sorts of things that dutn t
concern him and spent about half or
his time trvin' to talk tlie captain into
soilin' liis brig and putting the money
into ‘Pacific Lard.’ or it might have been
'.Mexican Balloon’ stock, as well as l re
member. This man was tinglin’ all over
with anxiety to find out what we had
stuck on. but as lie could not stick Ins
nose Into the water and find out, and
as there was nobody to tell him, he had
to keep on tanglin'.
”1 was just as anxious to know what
it axis the brig was restin' on as the
stock broker was, but I had the advan
tage of him, for I believed that r could
find out, and at any rate I determined
to try. Did you ever hear of a water-
glass. miss?”
“No, I never did,” said the Daughter
of tho House, who was listening with
great interest.
"Well, I will try to describe one to
you,” said John Gayther. “You make a
light box about 20 inches long and a
foot square and with both ends open.
Then you get a pane of glass and fasten
it securely in one end of this box. Then
you've got your water glass, a tail box
with a glass bottom.
“The way that you use It is this: You
get in a boat and put the box in the
water, glass bottom down. Then you
lean over and put your head into tlie
open end, and if you will lay something
over tlie back of your head, like a man
does when he is takin’ photographs, so
as to keep out the light from above it
will be all the better. Then, miss, you’d
be perfectly amazed at what you could
see through that glass at rhe bottom «>f
the box. Even in northern regions,
where the water is heavy and murky,
you can see a good way down, but all
about the tropics, where the water is of
ten so thin and clear that you can see
the bottom in some places with nothin’
but your naked eyes, it is perfectly nmu-
in’ what you can see with a water ffl&ft*.
It doesn’t seem a bit as if you were
lookin’ down into the sea. It is just
■.■9...9:.9:.9:-9:-9-—9-»-9-—9 • ••• • ••• • ••• • ••• 1
like gazin' about in the upper air. If it
isn't too deep things on the bottom,
fishes swimmin’ about and everything
else are just as plain and distinct as if
there wasn't any water under you and
you were just lookin’ down from the top
of a house.
“Well. I made up my mind that the
only way for me to find out what it was
that was under the brig was to make a
Wat erg] a ss and look down into the sea.
Bn I made one, takin’ care not to let the
stock broker know anything about it, for
I didn't want any of his meddlin’ in my
business. I had to tell the captain, but
lie said he would keep his mouth shut,
for he didn't like the stock broker any
more than I did.
"Well, miss. I made that water glass,
and when the stock broker was takin' a
nap—for he was clean tired out pokin'
about and askin’ questions and li vin' to
lino out what he might get out of the
business if he helped to save the brig •
the captain and 1 with a few men quietly
let down into the water the aft hatch,
one of those big doors they cover the
hatchways with, and when that was
restin' on the water it made a very good
raft for one man. and X got down on it
with my water glass and an our.
“The first tiling I did, of course, was
to paddle around the brig to the place
where she had been stove in. She wasn’t
leakin’ any more, because tlie water in
side of her was just as high as the wa
ter outside, so if we could do anything
this was tlie time to do it. I looked
down into the water on our starboard
bow, and I soon found the place where
the.brig had been stove in, probably by
some water logged piece of wreckage.
I located tlie hole exactly, and I report
ed to the captain, who was leaning over
tlie side. Then I paddled around the
brig to see if I could find out what we
were restjn' oa.
“When I had sunk my water glass well
into the water and had got my head into
the top of it I looked down on a scene
which seemed like fairyland. The corals
and water plants of different colors and
the white, glistenin’ sand and the fishes,
big and little, red. yellow, ink and blue,
that I told you of just now. were ail
there, and the light down under the wa
ter seemed to clear and bright that l
could see everything under me that was
as big as a pea.”
“That must have been an entrancing
vision,” said tlie Daughter of tiie House.
“Indeed it was,” replied John Gayther.
"but would you believe me. miss? I
didn’t look at it for more titan half a
minute, for when I turned my water
glass so that I could see under the brig
1 could not give a thought to anything
else in tlie world except the astonishin’
objects our brig was restin’ on.
“At first I could not believe my eyes.
I paddled around and around and I
thrust down my water glass, and I stared
and I stared until I fell as if my eyes
were cornin’ out of my head. At last I
t:-9.'9 — 9 — 9-~9+9—9—9—9 — 9 — 9 «
■.■9—9 — 9 — 9.
had to believe what I saw. There was
no use tryin' to think that my eyes
had made a mistake. It was all just os
plain to me as you are now.
"Down in the water, restin' on the bot
tom of this shallow part of the sea. were
two great ships of tlie olden time—ships
with enormously high poops, which were
the stern parts of old-fashiioned vessels,
built way up high, like a four-story
house. These two antiquated vessels were
lyin’ side by side and close together,
with their tall poops reachin' far up to
ward the surface of the sea, and right
on top of them, restin’ partly on one
ship and partly on tlie other, was our
brig, just as firmly fixed as if she had
been on tlie stocks in a shipyard.
"Tlie whole tiling was so wonderful
that it nearly took away my breath. 1
got around to tlie stern of the brig, and
then j stared down at the two vessels
under her until i forgot there was any
thing else in this whole world than those
two great old-fashioned ships. The more
f looked the more certain I became that
no such vessels had floated on the top
of the sea for, at least, two hundred
years. From what I had read about old-
time ships and from the pictures 1 had
seen of them, I made up my mind that
one of these vessels was an old Spanish
g.iiiein, and the other one looked to me
very much as if it were an English-built
ship.”
And how did they ever happen to be
wrecked there, side by side?” almost
gasped tiie young lady.
"Oh. they had been figlitin’," said John.
I here could be no mistake about that.
Tiiey had been figlitin ’each other to tlie
death, and they had gone down together,
side by side. And, there was our brig,
two hundred years afterwards, restin'
quietly on top of both of them.
! was still wrapped up. body and soul,
in tills wonderful discovery, when 1 heard
a. hai! from the stern ot the brig, and
there was the stock broker, shoutin’ to
me to know what 1 was lookin' at. of
toms**, -.hat i#,t an end to my observa
tions. and I paddled to the side and got
on board.
" Lend me that box,’ said tiie stock
broker, hind let me get down on your
raft, tt hut is it you've been lookin’ at,
and what did you see in that box?’
"But he had got hold of tlie wrong
man. ‘No, sir,' said 1. ‘Find a box tor
yourself if you want one.' And 1 held
mine so that he could not see that the
bottom of it was glass. Then the cap
tain came along and told him not to try
;o get down on that hatch, for if he
did he would topple into the water and
get himself drowned, which would have
been certain to happen, for he couldn't
swim. But to make things certaiii. we
hauled tlie hatch on board, and I wear
below with the captain to his cabin to
tell him what I had seen. The stock
broker tried awfully hard to come with
us. but we wouldn't let him.
"When tlie captain had heard all I had
to le!i him. he wasn't struck sentiment
ally the least bit. as T had been. It
didii’t make any more difference to him
whether those two ships had been down
there 200 years or two years, but there
was another part of the affair that was
very interestin' to him.
“ ‘Gayther,’ said he, ‘it's ten to one
that them ships has got treasure aboard,
and wiiat we've got to do is to form a
company and go to work and get it ’
" ‘And how would you do that?’ said
I.
“The captain, he was from Province-
town, Cape Cod. and it didn’t take him
two seconds to work out his whole plan.
‘Tt's this way,' said he: ‘the first
thing to do is to form a company. I am
president; you can be the other off io
ta's. and all the crew shall hold stock.
When that's all fixed, we can go to work,
and we'll mend that hole in our bow.
Now. that we know just where it is, we 11
work day and night in tlie hold, water
<>r no water, and we’ll stop up tlte leak,
an' we'll pump tlie* brig out and I believe
she'll float. Then we'll mark this plac*
witli a buoy and we'll sail away as fast
as we can. with our company all formed,
and everything fixed and settled, an.l
then wp'll come back with vessels and
machines and we'll get out that treas
ure. We'll divide it into three parts.
One part shall be mine: one part shall
lie yours, and the other part shall go to
tlie crew.’
"And how about the stockbroker?’ said
I. ‘Goin’ to let him in tlie company?’
“ ‘No, sir." said the captain, bringln’
his fist down on the table. ‘Whatever
else happens, he is to be kept out.’
"This was a very fine plan, but it
didn't altogether suit me. I didn't want
to sail away from that spot and perhaps
never see those two ships again. There is
no knowin’ what more T might find out
with my water glass if that stockbroker
could be kept from botherin’ me.
“I told the captain this, and he looked
hard at me and lie said: ‘It will take a
couple of days to mend that leak and to
pump out tlie brig. If this fine weather
keeps on T think we can do it in that
time, and if. while we ate workin’ and
pumpin', you choose to try to find out
more about them two ships, you can
do It.’
“ ‘And how can T do lt?‘ said I.
“ ‘If you can go down in a diver’s suit
you can do it.' said he. ‘I don't know
whether you know anything about that
business, but if you want to try I have
got a whole kit on board, air pumps, ar
mor and everything. It belongs to a diver
that was out with me about a year ago
in the Gulf of Mexico. He had to go north
io attend to sonic business and he told
me he would let me know when he would
come back and get his dicin' kit. But he
hasn’t come back yet. and the whole
business is stored away here on board.
Do you know anything about goin' down
in a divin' suit?'
"Now, ] had never done anything in the
CONTINUED ON LAST PAGE.
3