The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1864-12-02
Tribute to William Cullen Bryant.

One of Americas most reyered sons Of
song William, Cullen Bryant. has recently
''''''ined to the green old AGE of three
Score and ten, his eve vet undimned and
Ills natural force unabated. and in cousid-
Grafton thereof his brethren of ,h.. c.,-
tury Club, in New York. determined 70
render him an especial mark of honor.
which transpired on Saturday evening
last, and Is thus described in The New
York Commercial:
A festival, such as was never before
seen in this country, came off on Satur-
day evening at the rooms of the Century
Club. in Fifteenth street The occasion
was the seventieth birthday of William
Cullen Bryant, and the intention 10 DO
MN honor, partly as a member of the
|iup, but chiefly as poet of whom his
counfrymen may be supposed 10 be proud.
What the crowning of poet was i'm the
more poeticai days of old, as in Rome.
for instance, where Petrarch received the
Laurel amid the applause of the people.
such. IN spirit, was this festival. though.
OF course, no laurel was bestowed in If.
except the figurative one which the Cen
tury was supposed TO bestow by the hands
OF number of the poets fellows, each of
whom contributed a leaf of bav. in the
shape OF sony or poem. Most of the
American poets were invited TO he pres
ent, but several We're unable to attend
Mr. Longfellow from illness, Mr.. Lowell
on account of the death of his NEPHEW.
recently slain in hattie. and Messrs. Dana.
Whittier and Halleck for equally good
reasons
New England, however, was we'll rep
resented by Mr. Emerson, DR. Holmes,
and Mrs. Julia Ward Howe; PennSylra-
mia by Messrs. Bavard Taylor. George H.
Boxer and Charles Leland the West by
Mr.. I. b. Read; and New York 10y
Messrs- \. L. Willis, Alfred Ii. Street,
Fl. L. Tuckerman. f. c. Stelman. I. B.
Aldrich and r. H. Stoddard The rooms
which were decorated under the Superin-
tendence of Mr. Louis Lang. the artist,
were thronged at an early hour with the
members of the Club and the fainer por-
tion of their families There were, we
should Judge, al least five hundred pres
emf. the creRe-cic-bF-crese of New York
society, in wealth, beauty and intellect
The exercises commenced with an address
from Mr.. George Bancroft, the president
of the club, in which he stated the object
of the festival, and paid Mr. Bryant
number of well-deseryed compliments.
The latter responded in speech a. no.
ticeable for IFS good TASTE :ls for certain
kind of dry humor. which must have sur
prised all but Mr.. Brvant's personal
friends. If was so much like the hest things
in Hawthorne. Then came spirited
ode by Mr.. Taylor, Sci to music 10y Mr..
Louis Lang, and sung 10y three choristers
from Trinity Church. boys of fourteen or
thereabours. dressed in costume, and with
delicious. bird-like voices This was fol-
lowed 10y a characteristic speech from Mr..
Emerson, and the reading of poems by
Mrs Howe, Mr.. George III, Boxer and
DIR. Holmes. Afterwards came the pre-
sentation to Mr.. BRYANT of 4 large port
tolio of sketches. drawings. SC. from the
artist members OF the club, with AN ad-
dress by Mr. Huntington. and response
by the poet Then supper, and IFS atten-
dant good spirits:
Sport that wrinkled care derides.
And laughter holding both his sides
After supper. an address was made by
DR. Osgood, poem or two more read.
and finally, al late, or rather early hour.
this unique festival was finished-a festi-
val alike honorable TO the Century and
the good gray head upon which its hon
ors were bestowed"