The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-11-05
RALEIGH SHOULD BE AN ART
GALLERY WITH THE FORMS
OF THE STATES REVFlR
ED SONS.
GLIMPSEs INTO NEW ENGLAND HISTORY
The New EngIanders Have Commemorated
the Heroic Deeds of its Great Men.
There are Lessons for North
CarolnanS to Learn.
Carolinians to Learn.
Hartford. Conn, Nov. ?, 1S9'

Hartford, Conn, Nov. =, 1879.
To the Editor: Being in New England
on visit to schools, and having spent
a delightful day here. l feel like writ
ing short letter for your columns,
which | hope will interest some of your
readers. Hartford is n beautiful city of
about eighty thousand inhabitants, sit
uated near the centre Of Connecticut, in
the valley of the Connecticut River. A
settlement was made here by Rev.
Thomas Hooker and a handful of nell
and women from Boston in 1886. The
church yard in which he sleeps was
pointed out to me today. The school he
established, known as Hartford High
School. has about one thousand students,
and is a large feeder to Yale College.
Out of this grew Trinity College, one
Of the best colleges in New England is
located here, and is a splendid progress
siye school. The city schools are very
excellent The American Institution
for the Deaf and Dumb, one of the
very best schools of the kind in the
country, is located here, and has been
in successful progress for nearly a CEN
fee, costing over~wo millions Of dollars,
beautifully located in Bushnell park, the
old site of Trinity College 1t is built.
OF marble and granite and handsomely
frescoed In the Senate Chamber / sat
in the chair made of the Charter Oak,
which fell in 1886, and in which the old
charter was hidden to prevent its remov-
al by the Kings emissaries. had the
Mo ,,f Iaa tb NIL
charter itself, which is carefully pre-
served in the State House. In the State
Library / saw the portraits of all the
Governors Of the State since its found
ing. Statues of many of these stand in
the capitol and in the park surrounding
it. Chief among the statues that stand
as memorials to the States regard for
their distinguished sons is the one to
Nathan Hale, the unfortunate teacher
and soldier who was arrested during the
Revolution and hanged as a spy. On it
are inscribed his last words My only
regret is that ! have but one life to give
for my country" Among those who
are perpetuated in bronze and marble
are Noah Webster Trumbull, Rev.
Thomas Hooker and Putnam. A mag
nificent life-siZe portrait of Washington,
painted by Stuart for the State 6f
South Carolina, and bought by Con
necticut, stands in the Senate Cham
Der. Autograph letters are TO be found
in large numbers in the State Library.
from distinguished men of CoIoaial ard
Revolutionary days. \ revolving can
non from the sunllen Spanish warship
Viscaya, stands in the rotunda, ard
hundreds Of battle flags, torn by the
storm Of the civil war, are preserved in
suitable cases in the building. Ihe MOI
est homes Of Noah Webster, Harriet
Beecher Stowe, Mark Twain, Charles
Dudley Warner, and Senator HaWlny,
Il North Carolinian by birth, are pCinied
out with pride by these people.
As | looked upon the statues and
paintings of this States heroes TO-DAY.
| could not help feeling very sad 10 re-
feet upon our own sad mistakes along
this line We are too remiss in our dII-
ty to cur heroes. Our capital must
also be an art gallery, i'll which the rev
cred forms of our heroes may appear TO
prove our petritism, and our apprecia-
ton of those who in peace and war
labored for our welfare.
This is also the home of many great
insurance companies, whose palatial
buildings were pointed out TO me today.
The Pope Manufacturing Company,
which makes the Columbia Bicycla. is
situated here. The dress, the voice. the
architecture, the appearance and charac-
tel.stics of the people are very different
here from what they are in New York
and to the southwark. / haven't seen
but one negro in the city, and he looked
lonesome. The laboring people are more
intelligent and better paid than ours.
l hope to jot something more from
Northampton or Boston. Till then,
adieu.
NJ. III. HOLT.