Evening star., 1897-04-27
AT THE GRANT TOMB
Continued from Twelfth Pase)

ard putting tugs make their way by sum-
mer. while in winter solitary craft plows
through ice ana silent grandeur reigns.
Looking to the east are the signs of a
great city, the tall smokestacks of fac
tories. the hum from the busy streets and
the distant shrek of trains and ships.
with its myriads of masts and outlines of
decks that gradually grow indistinct until
nothing is seen but the blue waters of the
bay that seem to mingle with the eastern
sky. - ..
The striking features with which kind ma
ture has endowed the park have been
added to by tine mechanical genius CT man.
for almost within mfle of the great tomb
today this part of the city is practically
the scholastic center of the metropolis. at
though some of these buildings are not yet
entirely completed The new Columbia
the cast of the park are Of great archi-
tcctural beauty. Near them is the new
Barnard College. Just beyond on the ele-
vation of Morningside Heights Is the
overloaks these heights. and at night ITS
many lighted windows shine like some
heavenly constellation. Some Of the heights
Will be crowned with the new Protestant
Episcopal Cathedral of st. John the d.
vine, which for size and grandeur promises
to surpass anything on this continent, and
to rival the ancient cathedrals Of Eu-
rC?e.
1t is no, surprising that Riverside Park
has become a favoffte summer resting
place for the New Yorker. On warm
DAY its sloping green sides are crowded
sheltered paths the invalid in his car
riage is frequently seen drawing new life
from the refreshing breezes that blow from
the bay or down through the leafy pail
sades. And when the sun sets and the
Hudson glimmers with the reflected light
of a thorsand quickly passing portfolios
the benches in the park are almost always
filled with those grateful people who love
the silence and who, sometimes, in the
silence love.
The area of the park is about 1T acres
and its exact location is on the bank OF
the North river from 72d street to where
1O4th street would cut through
Its average breadth Is 500 feet. but the
Drive" the park is more familiarly
known. is much broader where the curves
On the coast or inland sides contribute TO
its area. Running north, it presents series
of ele9ations. each rising little higher
than the last, until at the summit of the
hill it meets an abrupt descent of 40 feet.
The Drive" when originally laid out pro-
and a promenade. Bicyclists have found
the park a delightful wheeling ground and
are always to be seen in great numbers on
it's paths.
as it is unknown. Before revolutionary
times the English aristocrats blu 1t their
summer homes there. and around many a
board. in mansions long since gone to de-
reign of George Ill. Modified by modern
architecture, with but few traces left of
what they were in earlier days, few of
these old landmarks still stand. The many
mounds along the surface of the hill tell
with silent eloQuerce the fate OF their for
mer owners.
1t was not until 1872 however, that the
city acquired the property. although nego-
ti<.ff fnps. fo~ 10 hI
in 1859 While the natural beauties of the
place were manifold. there remained much
to do. So the roadbuilders and Landscape
gardeners were put to wcrk. but 1t was not
until after 1885 that the drive began to pre-
sent anything like the appearance 1t has
today 1t was plain to the landowner and
the builder that with the approach of busi-
ness on 5th avenue that the seat of wealth
ard fashion was bound to change and so
many mansionsshave grown up on the sides
or the drive. which materially improve its
OF the old ma nsions which still remain in
The park the Claremont, by reason of it's
size and the fact that nearly all its ont
lines are still preserved. is the most re-
markabie 1t stands on spot just above
tie old tomb and was built in the last CEN
came the Earl of Devon, lived under its
roof and his munificent hospitality is in
separable from the history of the ancient
pile Associated with it. too. are many
It's walls have heard the wisdom of Alex
ander Hamilton, while at different times it
his sheltered the sofdierly Schuyler, the i'm
pIlsive Burr and the great statesman,
Thomas Jefferson.
Between the Clarement and the river is
a plain little marble monument about two
feet square, which is surmounted by an
urn. whose outlines have not been so dulled
by the storms Of years but that this in
scriptfon can be read: ITO the memory of
an amiable child. st. Clair Pollock, died
July Is. 1871. In the fifth year of his age"
st. Clair Pollock Is believed to have been
the son of wealthy English parents, who
were visiting Lord Courtney when the boy
died The monument is said to have been
erected by Lord Courtney
1t was good that to such spot as River
side Park such an honor should have come,
for there the general lies in the bosom Of
natures glory. within sight of a great city,
but beyond its tumult. and amid the trees
that whisper strange tales of old Manhat-
tan to the grateful crowd that seek their
shade And for miles around his tomb can
be seen. towering above the stately Hud-
son. a fitting tribute OF the nations honor
to its noble dead.
GEN. LONGSTREET'S TRIBUTE.