Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1905-10-11
PLYMOUTH ROCKS CRACK.
Its Origin Involves Unique and Ri
dicu1ous Bit of History.

~ has DCtu tue
of New England. 1t is on the coast,
thirty-eight miles south of Boston, and
is thriving and prosperous New Eng
laud town, with good schools and
churches, and town hail. and shops of
all kinds. and comfortable homes.
On the flat strip of land that runs
for miles up and down the shore of
the bay, the diminutive white houses
of the fishermen are crowded close to-
Sether. In the center of the same
fiat land-strip, fanked on both sides
by the iishermen's homes, is large.
open square forty yards from the wat
err front. Here stands Plymouth Rock,
the first sight of which gives one a
mental shock, for, no doubt. fancy has
pictured an immense boulder rising
grandly out of the sea: but, instead. the
visitor sees only an oDlong. irreguarly
shaped gray sandstone rock twelve
feet in length and five feet in width
at the widest point and two at the
narrowest. Across one part runs n
large crack which has been filed with
cement, and which gives to Plymouth
Rock highly artificial appearance.
The origin OIL this crack is bit of
unique history, and bears evidence to
the early differences that at times di.
vided the inhabitants into two fac
tons.
For long time there waged spirited
and bitter wranglins between the op-
posing parties, and it even settled
down upon the much-cherished Ply
mouth Rock, which one party declared
ought to be removed to more worthy
position in the town square, and the
other wranglers protested 1T should
not be moved an inch from its posi-
ton, even though they had to guard
it with their pixies and guns
Finally, the stronger faction drew
up their forces around Plymouth Rock,
and in attempting to move it up the
hill split it asunder, which seemed a
bad omen for those who had attempted
such thing, until an ardent Wing
leader tiourished his sword. and by an
eloquent appeal to the other Jealous
Wings convinced them that they
should not swerve from their plan of
carrying the rock to place in the
town square.
THE portion that first fell to the
ground belongs to u.s." he cried; "and
that we will transport with all care
and diligence to its proper home"
Twenty yoke Of oxen drew the Wing
section Of Plymouth Rock up the hill,
amid the shouts of the throng that
pushed forward around the liberty pole
which was to mark the new site. The
ceremony of dedfcatlng the rock in its
new position was very impressive, and
the people stood with barred heads, and
in reverent tones chanted their high
pitched psalms in token of thanksgiv-
ing.
In the town square this part of Ply
mouth Rock remained for more than
half century, when committee of
the council resolved to move 1t back
to its original position, and join it, as
best they could, to the other half. Ac-
cordingly in 1884 on the morning of
the Fourth of July, the Plymouth Rock
had been reunited in all seriousness to
its long-estranged portion, and the
union made complete by mixture of
cement and mortar.
To-day four granite columns support
canopy of granite that offers Ply
mouth Rock an Indifferent protection
against the rain and the sun, and
serves to keep back, in some measure,
the thousands of sightseers That come
to Plymouth with only one object in
view, namely, to press up around the
iron bars, and to gaze through them
at the revered rock, on which they
see the single inscription, cut in the
middle Of Its face in long, plain fig
ures, 1920"
The rock is surrounded by high
iron railing composed of alternate boat
hooks and harpoons, and Inscribed
with the illustrlous names of the forty
men who drew up the Pilgrims COM
pact on board the Maytlower that No
vember day as they sighted the coast
that henceforth was to be their home.