The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1854-03-26

Die l0SvltuIO0 upon tue bO08 OF tllb mcLOpoubs Ii
q word, the benefactions Of this church AMOUNT &C
cordng TO the best estimate which can now be made,
rating the lands at their present prices 70 the enor
nous sum of two millions of dollars. (Ses DIR. Ber-
riens History, p. 1861
its wealth. And does it present topic for Mr. Boor-
mans reproaches?
Who is it that demands that this street should be
opened? James B0orman and his associates. l
shall not attempt to dispute the responsibility Of
Mr.. Boorman, his wealth nor his charities. With
these considerations neither you nor | have
anything to do. He may be rich as Crte
sus, munificent as prince, benevolent as Howard
for ought know: but have rule laid downfor me
which deem it always safe to pursue, and hat Is
to consider the act proposed to be DONE ard from
that Judge the qualities of the actor far IS they
relate to that very transaction, and to none other
for ii would be doing violence to my duty as man,
particular act under consideration to consider the
general tenor Of any mans life, either to bepaise or
censure it. Chaucer says -
!" Loke who is most vertuous Away.
Priye and apert and most entendeth ay
To do the gentle dedes that he
And take him for the greatest gentleman"
If Mr. Boorman comes up to this standard, as his
counsel asserts, and do not deny, then he is true
gentleman. But how does that demonstrate that
this street should be opened The argument would
seem to be, :" Mr.. Boorman is a gentleman, there
fore the street should be opened through the church.
yard"
Mr. Boorman is, am told, an English gentleman,
who has been in this country many years, and has,
during his stay here amassed great wealth. BE it
so. He is the very man whom should expect TO be
foremost in such project as this. He has no rela-
tive presume, who distinguished himself in the
battles of the revolution No patriot ancestor OF his
lies Wondering in that sacred ground-no wife over
whose corse his tears of sorrow were shed-no bro
ther no sister, no mother buried there Nor can it
be expected that his bosom should swell with patri-
otto emotions for the remains of the warrior dead.
I go hat; Nolan in bnpon fro
or in her palaces, any praise was ever yet bestowed
upon the heroes of our Revolution. In all places,
there among high and low, they are alike regarded
and often spoken OF as successful rebels. England
can never forget that once we were Englands colo
Mes and would have been Englands colonies still,
but for the efforts of the very men some of whom
rest in yonder churchyard Nurtured where such
feelings prevalent and seeking our shores after
at all surprising if Mr.. Boorman entertains no hal
lowed feeling for the memory OF the patriots whose
lives were sacrificed in our struggle for liberty.
What participation, Mr.. Chairman, had Mr.. Boor-
man in the proceedings OF the Protestant Society
to secure the respectful nterment of deceased Amer
leans abroad? ask because am told that he at
tended the meeting of that society at the Iaber-
nacle and was particularly soicitous that our gov
eminent should take measures to procure place Of
sepulture in consecrated ground for Americans who
die abroad? Is he not now soliciting our govern
ment to take measures for the accomplishment Of
that object? What q picture of consistent, dsin-
terested benevoence is presented by this devotion
of Mr.. Boorman to the accomplishment of 80 desira-
BILE an object as the procurement Of place of sepul
ture in consecrated ground for our country
men who died in France, Austria, and Italy,
while he is at the same time proposing measure
which involves the necessity of digging up the
bones Of our revolutionary patriots at home Is
this fair specimen of Mr.. Boorman's benevolence !?
hope not. trust there is some mistake in regard
to the matter. Suppose Trinity Church had pro-
posed to erect stores on the ground which is now
docira NV for hic ctr how
rous would then have been the objections to the
proposed dissertation of the sacred remains of the
dead. Is it not fair to presume that Mr. Boorman
would have employed counsel to appear before a
committee Of your board, and protest in thunder
tones against the threatened outrage And then
you would have heard the indignant denunciatons
of his eoquence, demanding that the act should be
arrested as one which, if consumated, would out
rage all the better sentiments of humanity and do
violence to the settled fixed, unateable win of the
people And who are .Boorman petitioners!
know not. long list was once presented to me as
the names OF those who said to have petitioned
for the opening OF this street, but so many Of those
gentlemen have declared that their names were
either in effect forged to the petition or if they had
really signed such a document, it without q
knowledge of its contents and either false pretences
or suppression of the truth must have been used to
procure their signatures, that | know not who are
now his associates. A fraud SO base rs that is
worthy only of another genius than that of Mr..
Booiman. / can scarcely believe that the frank,
pam spoken olu rl1gIsHluNn WOuu no SUCH tDlHR.
1t is at war with the traditions by which an English
gentleman is governed. Wrong he may be-ob-
stna;c he may he: but he never can be otherwise
than frank, plain and straightforward in what he
does. He never can stoop to so low felony that
of procuring signatures by false pretences, Or even
by suppression of the truth.
Who opposes the opening OF the strocH First
Trinity Church. And here be it remarked that
Trinity Church has refused large sum of money to
allow the street to be opened. II she had been
selfish unprncipled and vile, as she is represented,
would she not have accepted $62 900 in 1884, to al
low that to be taken which is of no possible pecuni
airy value to her. and which in effect belongs to the
relatives and friends Of those who are inferred in
her vaults This fact is sufficient refutation Of
all the caumnies uttered against her. She opposes
her own pecuniary interests. She refuses a large
sum of money, and still proves faithful to her trust
For it is plain enough that if, in 1884, the property
now, owing to the immense appreciation of lots in
that neghborhood, be estimated at 100000 at the
least. And think you, Mr.. Chairman, that the pro-
pertyholders in that neighborhood would be willing
to pay such a sum for opening this street? If they
objected to the payment of 49,, 900 in 1884, as too
onerous them think you that they will deem 5000 900
now any less burdensomel Sir, the propertyholdcrs
will be among the most jealous opponents of the
measure, and the expensive proceedings to open
this street must ultimately be discontinued and the
costs incurred charged to the city, under the aus
pices of the reform administration.
In the second place the application is opposed by
SUCH Inen as tiie hon . llllOu, your hcCOfuer-
the noble, public spirited, patriotic reformer Tillou
in the van of whatever movement for the public
good-and of such men as Capt Tilou, General
Haight, Mr.. Townsend, and many others who have
friends and relatives buried there. The Recorder
has twenty-five relatives who buried in the line
of the proposed street. These men oppose it on the
ground that it would be an unnecessary and ruthless
Dissertation of the dead.
Again, it would cost, according to the estimates
made, nearly 100000 to dsinter and remove the
bodies buried there. This too, whatever it be- must
be added to the assessment to be paid by the property
holders or by the city, viii they thank you for such
an additional burden
Having said thus much negatively by way Of re-
ply to the argument of the learned counsel for the
applicants for the opening Of the street. and Of the
persons who ask for and those who oppose the mea-
sure, permit me now to say few words by way OF
affirmative argument against that measure.
And now, Mr. Chairman, propose, in my own
humble way, to offer some suggestions, to show
First, That the proposed opening of Albany street
would be an act in derogation of the grant made by
the city Of New York to Trinity Church in 1908,
and that it would be reputation of solemn com