The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1897-04-06
The Grant Monument.

D. Grant in the massive monument erected
by the nation TO perpetuate his memory,
VIII take place April q. The sarcophagus,
with PEDESTAL of Massachusetts granite.
thrown into bold relief by Wisconsin quar-
| ries product awaits in the vaulted cham
Der OF the monument the coming of the re-
mains. Within the last month it has been
placed in position. II Is the finest specimen
OF work of this nature ever constructed.
Anything suggestive in the least of cheap
ness or tawdry display Will be prevented
from becoming a part Of the ceremony It
Is intended that the general conditions upon
which thu events of the day will be based
shall be altogether of a nature that will
reflect proper dignity upon the nation and
its guests on that occasion. Chief among
the notables who viii take in the days cere-
monies will be President Mckinley and his
cabinet. From Washington, TOO. viii come
the entire diplomatic corps. Besides these
d.gnitaries the governors of many states
Will be present, together with their STATS.
The parade will be one worthy OF the oc-
casion. General y. Noel Brakeman, chief
OF staff General Dodge. says that in every
respect 1t will surpass everything of the sort
that has previously been attempted While
owing TO constant changes that are taking
place in the matter of detail il is impossi-
BILE TO give the exact makeup of The pa
rade, sufficient is known TO make Il posi-
bic 10 say that so far as the military feature
is concerned. nearly half the number of
states that go to make up the Union VIII
be represented by regiments, companies or
| Officers of the National Guard, assigned to
represent their respective commemorative
On the Hudson will be sight as notable
as that on the land, for here, 1t is expected.
4 r.-ifI
rendezvous. In addition, there Will be
number of foreign warships sent here by
their governments as tribute TO the men,
| ory OF man who was respected by every
civilized nation. The government fleet viii
also include the five revenue cutters and
| eleven light house tenders now In eastern
| Waters. Besides these there will be very
large number of vessels of all sorts, includ-
ing several of the transatlantic liners. The
naval parade will be led by the flagship
| New York, on board of which Admiral
Bunce will establish his headquarters di-
| recting the parade from the bridge of the
| cruiser It is believed that this feature of
the days ceremonies will be fully equal to
| the great naval parade on the occasion of
| the Columbian festival of 1895,
So long has the Grant monument been
| building that it has almost become the per-
| ennial standby for the newspaper humor-
ist. The tongue of the RATHER is silent now.
The trenchant pen of the jokemaker must
tell of something else. The Grant monu-
ment is an established fact, grand in its
simplicity, inspiring in the memories that
it brings to life. There is no place in New
York or vicinity better fitted for the Ioca-
ton of such monument than the one
where ii stands. From it one looks upon
hat u-;-h ty,o
heart of the peasant and the mind of the
artist. The Hudson river, the American
Rhine, flows silently within stones throw
Directly opposite and across the waters the
palisades loom in grandeur that has given
them worldwide fame. Looming north, the
Hudson may be seen as far as the Tappan
Zee. the eyes glancing over a stretch of
country every inch of which is famed in
history
The immediate surroundings of the monu-
ment itself are very beautiful. To the rear
and south are located the stately buildings |
of the new Columbia university. Adjoining |
them will stand, as soon as time and labor !
permit the great Cathedral of ST. John the |
Divine, which is to cost $40 600. 600. Con- |
stantly flowing by the monument is |
stream of humanity on pleasure bent, for |
here. along the edge Of the bluff. is the |
Riverside Drive. one of the most charming |
of New York's boulevards.
All around. too. is emerald sward, and
from this background the monument stands |
out In bold relief. 1t is the object of inter-
est par excellence in that section of New
York and its location has given TO old
Boomingdale fame which nothing else
could have inspired. Here Grant rests and
rests alone, save for one companion, and
A.
one out of a thousand visitors notes the
contrast between greatness and simplicity
that is shown by the presence scarce
hundred yards from the monument, of the
marble urn which marks the resting place
of the little child of a British officer. VINO
fell from the cliff and was afterward buried
at Its summit, more than 100 years ago.
The monument in it's design is the work
OF the architect, John H. Duncan. More
than anything else, IL is a temple, some
thing after the style OF the Pantheon, DOM
mating with its strong and simple lines |
the scenery of its picturesque neighborhood. | I
Ii is both compact and symmetrical. Its
base Is square in the Doric style. The ex- ,
terror is granite, the interior white marble. | .
At the entrance are two massive bronze
ioors, Is feet AZ inches high, Of a united
width of feet, and IL feet in thickness.
While the doors are called bronze, they are !
really built of ash. covered with a thick
coating of bronze put on in sheets about I
an eighth of an inch thick. and so skllful-
Y pieced together that no Jennings are visl-
1le TO the naked eye. The total weight OF
he bronze used is 900 pounds. while the
combined weight OF the doors is three tons
The portals are severely plain, both in
lesign and decoration. In each there are l
oil To- md | f;
mes. The only ornamentation consists OF r
,ronze rosettes of different sizes. There
ire twentysix of these In each OF the large q,
'anels, and twelve in each of the smaller. | s
Sosettes OF larger size embellish the sides :
I the doors and are placed between the
'anels. In order to prevent relic hunters
rom clipping off any OF these rosettes. r
hey are bolted into the solid ash. p
On entering the porch at the southern q
xposure, one sees through the doors the
pening of the crypt, 80 feet wide in he u
enter of the chamber Looking al the T.
ault there are observed the sarcophagus ?.
attended for the remains OF General Grant
nd the space where eventually the sar
ophagus for Mrs. Grant will De placed. q
veThead, the Interior takes the shape Of =
rotunda. AZ present, there IS a system OF ! 70
pproaches 10 the monument with VIDE !
cps 10 liz east dlst NsSt- & WHINING pain
} Claremont and broad ascent from the "
outh. AS soon as possible will be con- "
ruc;ei a broad esplanade leading from the n
riverside Drive. which fronts the monu- II
lent. down the teclivity TO the edge OF the
hudson river. and bridging the tracks OF I,
le New York Central which lie al the -
veTs edge At the end OF The esplans5e =
III be at ornamental boat landing This -
ork viii buttress the bank CO the river. -
pom which the tomb imposes consider
BE weight.