Omaha daily bee., 1910-08-05

On the curving tip Of Cape Cod. sixty
miles from the Massachusetts, mainland. on
ground in Provincetown hallowed as the
landing place OF the Pilgrim pioneers Of
New England 20 years ago. an imposing
monument has been reared and will be dedi-
Gated today with naval. military and civic
ceremonies. Provincetown has been prepar-
ing for the event for more than a year and
will celebrate with distinguished company
as never before. President Taft will par
ticipate in the exercises. together with
other representatives OF the nation. and
dignitaries of Massachusetts,. Addresses
will be delivered by the president by Sena-
tor Henry Cabot Lodge, DR.. Charles w.
Eliot, president emeritus Of Harvard, Gov
ernor Draper Of Massachusetts, and James
I. McCleary Of Minnesota. Sixteen battle
ships will add the thunder of saluting to
the general acclaim. The concluding part
OF the program will be the unveiling OF a
historic bronze tablet inserted in a sunken
panel over the south door of the monument
1t is intended to replace the one which was
above the portal Of the old town hall, de-
stroyed by fire in 1877. and which bore this
inscription:
In commemoration of the arrival Of the
Mayflower in Cape Cod harbor and of the
first landing of the Pilgrims in America at
this place, November IL. 1920 this tablet is
presented by the Cape Cod association,
November 8, 1883"
Inc inscription on the new tablet is from
the pen Of DR.. Eliot and the wording is
not to be made public until the unwilling.
The Pilgrim monument is ga shaft of
granite resting upon a reinforced concrete
foundation built upon the crest of
Provincetown's highest hill. The HILL stu
ated in the center Of the town and only
900 feet from the seas margin, is ninety
feet high. The shaft rises 252 feet higher
With the exception of the Washington
monument the Pilgrim monument is the
tallest OF solid construction in this country
It's weight is about II, 600 900 pounds exclu-
sive of the base. The weight of the tower
and base is approximately 1880 tons This
great weight rests upon a hill of plain
sand. The base of the monument is twenty
seven feet square The walls at the base
are five feet thick, while at the battle
mented top the thickness is still greater.
Anchor rods Of STEEL set in concrete
give added strength to the tower through
out its entire length. The granite blocks, of
which 1t is built are laid In concrete When
short time ago experts detailed from the
office Of the United States engineers in
Boston made scientific tests of the monu-
ment foundation to ascertain IL It had
flinched under the great pressure imposed
on 1t and IL the monument had varied from
the exact perpendicular, It was found that
the whole structure had settled only one
quarter Of an inch, that depression being
uniform at all points and that the struc-
| tire had No aria baIr
| the perpendicular.
The interior of the monument is seven
teen feet square. Ascent is made by a conn
| bination Of the inclined plane and step sys-
TENS composed of reinforced concrete and
extending from the monument base to the
| big arch at the top OF the monument. 201
feet above the hilltop.
| Ihe monument project got It's real start
in 1904, when the commonwealth of Mas
sachusetts agreed to give $4,000 toward
the object If the promoters would raise a
nike sum in a specified time. Within the
time limit the Pilgrim Memorial assocla-
uon acquired $4,000 from the national gov
eminent and $4,000 from other sources.
and work OF excaYating a Dit to receive
concrete foundation was begun early
in July, 1907.
In that hole concrete reinforced with
steel rods was laid in successive lavers.
lTWenty-four thousand cubic feet Of sand
was removed to receive the great base.
which sunk five and a half feet in the
ground and rising four and a half feet
above the surface, is sixty feet SQUARE AZ
the bottom but batters in to tweny-eIght
feet square at the op. The cornerstone.
in whose laying President Roosevelt as
sisted, August 20, 1907, is five feet ten
inches long, two feet wide, two and one
half feet thick and weighs nearly 400
pounds.
Memorial stones to the number Of 1en
or more, the gift Of as many towns and
cities associated with the Pilgrims oc.
Icupy inches in the interior facing the
monument.
Provincetown Is situated at the very fin
Of Cape Cod, sixty miles seward from
the Massachusetts, mainland. 1t is a pros-
porous town OF 400 inhabitants. Tbree
life saving stations and three lighthouses
Race Point (erected in 1850, Long Point
uS26) and Wood End QS72), are within he
borders. First settled in 1850. it has since
been wholly supported by the fisheries
Its present fishing fleet contains seventv.
TWO large vessels and besides the biggest
motor fishing fleet numerically to be found
on the New England coast, 225 Of that stvle
OF fishing craft, averaging three men a
boat comprising that particular fleet
which is employed in bay shore FISHING
the year through.
Here in November, 1920 the Pilgrims
MADE landing; here occurred the first
BIRTH that Of Peregrine White, and the
first death, that Of Dorothy May Bradford
In the Pilgrim band after the Atlantic
voyage.
1t became a precinct under Truro June
lS' ln4 and town June Il, 1877. In recent
years 1t has become the resort Of thou.
sands OF health and pleasure seeking NIL.
grims In summer, and its harbor has beer
the place of rendezvous and its bav m,
target practice field Of the North Atlantic
battleship fleet since 1905.
PROSPERITY OF THE WEST.