The suburban citizen., 1901-09-21

mute testimony to the patient suffering
which the murdered President had en-
dured. He was dressed as he usually
was in life. The black frock coat was
buttoned across the breast where the
first bullet of the assassin had struck
A black string tie below the standing
lcollar showed the little triangle of white
shirt front. The right hand lay at his
lside. The left was across his body.
Most of those invited had entered
when, at 1857 o'clock, President Roose-
welt drove up in a carriage with Mr.. and
Mrs. Ansley Wilcox. He shook hands
in silence with several members of the
Cabinet, who met him at the carriage
and slowly walked to the piazza and
into the house.
In a smaller library on the north side
OF the house were most OF the members
OF the Mckinley family who were pres
ent and a few Of their closest friends
Mrs Mckinley did not come down
Istairs during the services. With Mrs
Barber, Miss Barber Mrs. Hobart and
DR.. Rixey, she sat at the head of the
stairs leading into the main hall All
the doors were open and she could hear
prayer, and the sweet strains OF the
choir reached her as they sang the
Presidents favorte hymn.
She sat through it all, silent and pas
(. .sive. 1t seemed as if her great grief
shad exhausted her power for suffering.
With handkerchief at her eyes she
buried her suffering in her broken
heart. Never moving until just be-
fore the coffin was carried out, she was
gently raised from her chair and led
away to her own room.
As President Roosevelt entered the
library everyone rose Gravely he
walked past the line of the Cabinet
members to the head OF the coffin. For
a moment he gazed on the face OF Mr..
4 Mckinley His eyes we're suffused
\ with tears and his mouth twitched, but
4 with a superb effort of the will he mas
tered his emotions. During the re-
mainder of the service his face was set
4 and grim.
Turning, Mr.. Roosevelt took his
place with the Cabinet At this mo
{ sment Rev. DR.. Charles Edw. Locke, of
gthe Delaware Avenue Methodist Epis-
9copal Church, son of that DR.. Locke
8WhO for many years was the Mckinley
4pastor at Canton, entered the room. He
took position at the door leading into
Bthe outer hall.
A quartet from the First Presbyterian
4 Church had been stationed in the din
Sing room, and with the sweet strains OF
one OF the Presidents fayorite hymns,
a Lead, Kindly Light" the services be-
gan. Eyes that before had been dry
ahlled with tears as the words were sung
Swith exquisite feeling and pathos.
AS the last strains died away DR..
Locke's voice was heard He began
4 8reading from the fifteenth chapter OF
First Corinthians. There was a mo-
Sment's pause after he had finished, and
n then the quartet sang the verses oil
4 Nearer, M God, to Thee" so dear to
sthe man about whose bier the mourn
4ers stood.
AS the music died away for a mo-
Hment there was intense silence. Then
Z ain prayer DR.. Locke, his words uttered
y so that they reached the ears of the
8woman sorrowing for her dead, made
8an eloquent appeal
81 All present joined in the Lord S
q Prayer as the minister repeated it,
n President Roosevelt's voice being au-
a 8dlble at the back of the room. The
SS,erVice concluded with a simple bene-
8diction
The funeral director was about to steE
gtorward to place the cover on the cofir
when suddenly there was a movement
behind Governor Odell. Senator Hanna
( awho had risen, saw that the last oppor-
4 tunity to look into the countenance of his
4 dead friend had come. Pressing forward
III an instant he was at the side of the
coffin, bending over and looking down
! INTO It. Almost two minutes passed and
then he turned away and the coffin was
closed.
-Four sailors, two infantry sergeants
and two artillery sergeants bore the cof-
fin out of the house. The President,
Cabinet and others followed it. Mrs.
Mckinley and the members of the family
4 remained
It was 1880 o'clock when three long
Z rolls of muffled drum told those outside
the house that the funeral cortege was
about to appear. At the moment the cof-
I'm appeared Nearer, My God, to Thee, "
ascended in subdued strains from one OF
The military bands. Tenderly the bearers
lowered the coffin from their shoulders
and placed it in the hearse. Soldiers and
sailors swung into long columns and
took up the march southwark toward the
I City Hall
AS the funeral cortege moved south on
Delaware avenue toward the City Hall
a vast concourse of people looked on. 1t
began raining hard and the people were
drenched by the time the body reached
the hall.