Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1905-12-21
SAVING nOLD SOUTH"
The Debt Which the United states
Owes to Mrs. Hemenway.

The ground on which the Old South
meeting house in Boston stands was
the dwelling place Of Governor Win
throp. Benjamin Franklin was bap-
tized in this meeting house. The voices
of Adams and Hancock and Warren
and Washington have been heard with
in its walls. You will see back Of the
pulpit platform and below the quaint
old sounding board the very window
through which General Joseph Warren
came TO deliver his famous grafton on
the anniversary Of the Boston massa-
ere, because the crowd in and around
the church was SO great he could not
enter by the door.
In this chuEch We're held some Of the
great meetings leading up to tho IA
nous Boston tea party" Indeed, 1t
was from this sanctuary Of freedom" !"
as it has been called, that the band Of
men disguised as Indians started for
the wharf TO board the ships and throw
overheard the taxed tea.
Did you ever hear the story OF how
the Old South was Saved" Rever-
ence for historic landmarks did not run
SO high years ago as it does today, and
in our centennial year Of 1876 it was
proposed to sell the Old South simply
for the value Of its bricks and timbers
and tear it down that q modern bust.
ness block might be built on It's site.
Indeed, it was sold-"knocked down"
at auction to q bidder for the meager
sum of S1,315.
Suddenly Il wave of patriotic feeling
swept over the city of Boston. The
papers and some of the people began
to protest against the tearing down of
the old sanctuary of freedom" and q
movement was set on foot TO raise
funds to buy the church from its pur-
chaser and to buy also the ground on
which it stood. This good plan nigh.
never have succeeded had it not been
for one noble and loyal woman In Bos-
ton, Mrs. Mary Hemenway, Of hall
lowed memory. When the difficulty Of
securing funds for the purchase Of the
old meeting house became known to
her she came forward with gift Of
100000 and thus the old meeting
house was saved to stand as an object
lesson to the children of future gener-
ations.
Having given such large sum to
help save the Old South meeting house,
Mrs. Hemenway felt that it should be
something more than mere silent
monument She determined that it
should be n real, living force In our
country, and particularly to the chill
dren Of Boston. She determined that
IL should renew and increase Its fame
as Il temple Of freedom and that It's sa-
cred walls should again echo and re-
| echo to the sound Of patriotic utter
ances and that some Of these utter
ances should come from the lips OF the
| boys and girls Of Boston, and thus the
Old South lecture course and the Old
South prizes were established. Each
year prize of $40 and another Of $50
| are given to the graduates OF the Bos-
| ton high schools who write the best es-
says on historic or patriotic topics. The
| committee having this work in charge
announce the subjects in June, just be
| fore the schools close, and the competi-
| tors must submit their essays the fol-
| lowing January. Then on Washing
| TONS birthday there Is patriotic gath
| ering OF the school children of Boston
IN the old meeting house, and the
names of the prize winners are an
nounced.-St. Nicholas.