The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1889-05-26

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: FRONT VIEW OF ARTHUR's MONUMENT.
: OF the four presidential graves in New
York state those of Arthur, Van Burer
] and Grant are in the valley Of the Hud
son. The ebb and flow Of the sea passes
them, and commerce up and down that
! magnificent highway is hurried past
them day and night by rail and keel.
Grants tomb on the heights Of Riverside
park in New York city looks out upon
the palisades Of the lower Hudson and
Is southwark to where it broadens into the
s. finest harbor on the continent. Van
+ BVcn's gravcat KinderhoOk is back a few
. miles from the river, near the shore of a
0 beautiful lake of that name, and some
thing like thirty miles below the head Of
Z Hudson navigation. Arthurs remains
b lie on one Of the west side bluffs Of the
o river, only three miles below the tcrmi-
/, nus of nayigabie water. Northward
G from that terminus the Hudson is a
I stream OF inferior dimensions flowing
q from the sOliudes Of the Adirondack
D forest
The home Of the Arthur family was in
.his region Of the upper Hudson. Ches-
ter Allan Arthur, the president, was the
d son of Rev. William Arthur native of
County Antrim, Ireland, and q Baptist
clergyman by profession. While the IA
ther was pastor Of a congregation in
Fairfield, Vt, the child who was TO sit at
the head of the nation was born. The
family subsequently removed to Albany
county, where, in the little hamlet Of
Newtonville, William Arthur died on
the 9th Of October, 1870. He lived To
see his son grow into manhood, and
that manhood ripen.
a family burial plot had been selected
in the Albany Rural cemetery someycars
before the presidents father died. II
now contains the grav,e Of the father
and mother Of the president. those Of his
wife, son, sister, "a broihor-in-law and
his wife's mother. All of these went be-
fore the president TO this silent sunny
family home. The late cx-prcsident died |
J i'm New Aorl, city on Nov. is. 1856 After |
"a funeral service in the metropolis his |
remains were taken ID the Albany Gene |
terry, accompanied 10y large number of /
personal friends. The funeral was private |
in the scnse that everything was doneby /
the familyand by tine personal associates |
of the deceased The newspapers in
dulgcd some aitcrward i'm the usual talk
about monument beGitne themanand
president OF the United States, but no
official action was taken in the matter
either by congress or the legislature Of
his state. No such action has been
necessary TO properly mark the grave.
Personal friends. men Of high rank in
politics and in public affairs, who were
colldboraiors with Mr.. Arthur in the
latter years Of his political and social
career, have caused to be set up at his
grave granite memorial as modest in
proportions as it is simple in design and
indcstructible in material.
The Arthur plot is on the western Dor
der Of what is known as the old part Of
the cemetery, and at the summit of the
first ascent Of the hin from the river
valley. The outlook steward the north
west, terminating on the right in a
woody mvine, at the bottom of which a
clear cold brook flows, summer and win
ter over stony bed down through the
cemetery and across the plain to the
Hudson; and on the left in o broad ex- -.
panse Of burial plots, thiclly studded /
with granite blocks and shafts. which a
denote 40 the same time the graves of q
dear friends departed and the wider dis
trlbution of wealth iu-thesc more modern
times At the bottom OF the rayine. di-
roctly in front Of the Arthur lot. q spring
Of cold, delicious water bubbles out
from the foot of q gigantic elm. To
THIS fountain everybody visiting the
locality and knowing OF It's existence re-
sorts for q refreshing drink.
Among the monuments in the field Of
Vision toward the Left of the Arthur plat
re those of Ihurlow Weed and the late
ecrotary of the treasury, Daniel Man
ing. Further round TO the left stands
magnificent polished granite shaft to
he memory Of the revolutionary gen
raj, Philip Schuyler, the defender of
he upper Hudson valley during the war -
or independence, while On the margins
1 the raVinc above spoken Of and about =.
alf way down the slope Of the cemetery ~
luil are thenonumcnts. standing nearly
pposite each other. of the revolutionary
eneral, GanseyOort. and Governor Will
lm l. Marcy, Of this state.
The memorial block ~hich the friends
President Arthur have now set up bv
IS grave stands little TO the westward
the center of the family plot It's piI
by a rise Of yeg.anite steps.
irving inwardly aud l6 feet wide be- %.
veen the granite newell posts. which
e feet square. with caps to CORE ~. ~.
'ond. The base stone of the monument e.,
10 feet long lay 6 feet inches wide and
foot D inches thick IL is dressed gran
=, not polished. Next above this is q /
'lished granite block, o feet 3 inches yol
ne by . feet inches wide and inches mo
lex On this platform are two up /
,ht blocks Of polished granite, about . +
Il square and the same in height. carry i'r
Q massive sarcophagus. which is. OF cen
1rse' the main feature Of the memorial +
ucture. This is cut and polished from lit
gle piece Of Quincy granite. uniform b
color and finish with the blocks il rests
on and the base piece on which they
nd The sarcophaeus expands up- III
rd uniformly on all four faces and is 'o cl
shed on top IN the form of a roof NON
ping upward from the ends as well rs .
N the sides. The dimensions at the NJ
tom are feet inches by 3 feet 0. now,
The top the length is feet with a good
increase in the width. Tho Or
Ih OF the sarcophagus from tho peak 0,a c