New-York tribune., 1894-10-09
Mp HOLINESS LAST HOURS.
,ru CAME SUDDENLY TO The rOfi =
,,.c FOR THE FUNERAIr-rRIBuTES OF
PRESIDENT ELIOT AND PROF CHN"''h'
ELIOT NORTON

is River and immortalzed III the Iai"""'
'" .uv Aviary' The members OF the ram
poe"' o,ob, that the end might come III iew
N -, that the aged "Autocrat WOULD ho'
"'O. .,,.o the chilling winds of another New hns-
s winter and they we're unprepare" loi Ms
o., Yesterday Seated In his chalr UNCONSCIOUS
aeA'" =, him. and IN a short half hour his
" rad flown There was no time to put MN
SPIN a1 and before the physician who had
~" s,rorooncd could arrive Or Holmes was
rhere were no last wishes, the Ias'
.s, was never spoken. for the end came uh-
,eralded and sudden ..
NJ Uolnles and his sonf Judge Homes were
~ rids, Of a conversation in the poets
,oober Yesterday afternoon just preceding '"e
or.s death. and TO neither, certainly not 10
,s, was there anv evidence that the END
w 60 near The dying poet. for ne was even
~ ~ 4. seems. passing away. was sitting In
.,tb his head bowed on the arm OF
'" cbai- and It was thought he would be
""O, o,,,f,r, able if he could be moved into his
nv armchair. an old-fa shioned piece Of
i''N l,.,ro with a winged back. Accordingly. his
.,,r,ortsd Dr. Holmes 20 the big chair and
- noat sank into ii he leaned his head on
" :, tho side rests and said: That is better;
vt vou" This simple domestic phrase was
-. e,al utterance Of Or. Holmes. His son ana
,,-s DixwelL who were IN the room. soon no
.'ood that The sick mans breathing became ir-
.'r,,ar and almost Immediately ceased alto
gether. a,,"
nnr Holmes knew that he was going to die
la friend Of his to-day. "but ne made no
,,root reference to IT ard expressed no wish De-
,.,ra that contained this significant conVer-
.,,o, he held with his three or four days
".Veu WENDELL said the doctor, what is
4 Kings Chapel%
ooh yes. father said Judge Holmes
.ur r,qbt then. am satisfied. That is all
- going to say about it, said the doctor
~,,is nassins away We, an ideal one. There
r.s mn main. II was as peaceful as was MS
life" said his friend
Iuage Holmes summoned his wife. and the
,napimate form of thc "Adtccrat' was removed
10 couch.
DR. Holmes down town as late as IaS'
rnursdav. at the Parke~ House. making ar
-aneemen,s for the meeting of the Saturday
Cub and despi,e his great age and his bron-
cbal affection he was n good spirits. During
,bA summer cxcep. for his as;hrlatic troubles
Dr. Holmes had been in remarkably good heal'h.
ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE FUNERAL
The ARRANGEMENTS f.. the funeral are being
made under the supervision Of Dr. John Dix
well.
The services are to take place in Kings Chapel
q, noon Wednesday, and the Rev. Dr. Edward
Everett Hale will offcia;e Burial will be In the
family lot at Mount Auburn. The services are 10
be of semi-public nature, It Is understood al
though all the details have not been perfected
Cousins Of Dr. Holmes vii. be the pall-be arors
There is probably not more exclusive clup III
Boston than the celebrated Saturday club OF
which Dr. Holmes was one of the original men,
bers and for many years. until his death ne
was its president The Saturday club was "hat
might b. called the result Of the stil more ID
nous Atlantic Club. The Atlantic Monthly
had its origin an the Atlantic Elub. whlch IN
eluded at the time Of its organization such men
as Emerson. Longfellow, Lowell, Holmes, In
derwood f. lockwood Hoar. Motley. Edmund
Quincy and others. and this club formed for
number of years the most brilliant literary club
Of the New World IN hi cub the SATURDAY
Club had its origin. II WAS crganiZei III 1924 ny
HOrato Woodman, and Dr. Holmes was one ol
the first members. Tie O,hcr original members
still living are Judge r. lockwood Hoar ot Con
cord and John VI. FORBES. Of tosi e Inc ,r ulh-
ners of the club usually lasted into the carry
evening Every one had something To say IN
formally and generally some Of the greater Heh's
Of the club had something In particular 10 say
These are members of the cluD lo-udN " imam
Dean Howells. Thomas Bailey Aldrich. Dr. hd,
ward Emerson Of Concord; Judge +. RockWood
Hoar Of Concord: General Francis a MaiKer'
W A. Field Martin Brimnler, Professor 1lcKer-
ing of Harvard Observatory; Senator George
F. Hoar Of Worcester: John Lowell, Professor
William James, Colonel Henry L. Hlseihson;
Edward ". Hooper. John NJ Forbes MoprlleIu
Story Professor Charles Eliot Norton. Iro'es-
sor ]. G GRAY. Horace Gray and Judge O. W.
Holmes
Al the last meeting Of the club in June, there
were sixteen members present ana li. foIIleS
presided in his brightest manner Belne ,n Int
last meeting Of the season there were naturaiIN
many little Informal talks and "reminiscences and
al the conclusion goodbys were said for the
summer shortly afterward DR.. Holmes was
in the quietude IF his country home at BeVerlY'
and nearly all the members Of the cIub W"rf
away from the city In other quiet places. me
goodbys that Dr. Holmes said 70 most oi ms
old and Younger associates at that last dinner
were his final adicus 10 them.
PRESIDENT ELIOTs TRIBUTE
President Eliot Of Harvard College. speaking
OF the late Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes. said
His connection with Harvard was through the
Medical School He never taught literature or
gave any lectures on literature. He taught AT the
Harvard Medical School for thirty-Nye years
where be Professor Of Anatomy and Phys
iology teaching also histology and microscopy
He began when the Harvard Medical school was
not OF much account but lived ana worked IN IL
.ohg enough to see II become IMPORTANT ne
taught the above branches until lS'l. when he oc-
came Professor of Anatomy alone, which he con
tinued to teach until 1882 In those busy days
when he lecturcd in so many branches, he used
10 say that nc occupied not chair but a
settee' Of medicine in the Harvard Medical
School
DR. Holmes was a hard and faithful worker and
one Of the brightest men who ever lecturcd AT
the medical school Tie did a great deal 20 make
the school what il has become lie le'turcd regu-
larly FIVE times a week throughout The school year
and never failed 10 be on hand He vas the most
careful ~ men in preparation OF his lectures. and
very painstaking in his experiments. lie was very
efaCt in dissection.
Dr: Holmes's greatest contribution 70 the world 5
medical knOWledge was the discovery OF the fact
that puerperal fever is contagious. He cOntended
50 for years and met with all sorts OF ridcule
~ Is now. OF course. axiom OF mcdlcal kno~l
edge. | once heard Or Osler. OF Baltimore. say
mat this Is one OF the greatest contributions that
science.
Professor Charles Eliot Norton spoke feelingly
of DR.. Holmes. He had known him man
years. lie is better able t. talk of Dr Holmes