The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-07-03

Adams still lived. But the candle was
burned to It's socket and could give but
q few feeble fiekers. j." 'Tis a great
day! 'Tis a good dayl" he said to The
anxious relatives who surrounded his
bed, Reason wavcred, but the 1uttering
mind in its Inst earthly moments re
called the friend of Monticello, the old
comrade who had stood with him shoul.
der to shoulder in the fight for freedom.
Thomas Jefferson still survives he
murmured in voice so feeble that the
last syllables were scarcely distinguish
able, Those were his last words. His
spirit departed with the descending sun.
he died in error. Thomas Jefferson did
not survive. For days the great Demo
crat had felt the approach Of death and
had prepared for it, desiring only that
he might live until the Fourth. On the
became almost continuous "Ah, doc
tor" he said awakening in the night,
care you still there! Is it the Fourth?n
cit soon will be- answered the ply
sician. AS midnight approached, those
watching noted anxiously the passing
Of the minutes, hoping and praying that
the feeble thread might hold and death
be hallowed by the great anniversary.
The wish WAS granted. Not until fifty
minutes past meridian did the soul of
the great commoner exchange immor-
talities. 1t was before the DAYS of tele-
graphs and railroads. The news spread
slowly. Five days elapsed ere the deni.
zens Of Baltimore and Washington
learned of what had happened at Brain-
tree. Meantime the inhabitants of Vir
ginia and neighboring states mourned
the death Of Jefferson. marvelling great
ly over the strange coincidence that one
who had been the author of the declara
tion should die upon the fftieth ami
versary of it's adoption.
Golden Pages of History.
Then came the news from the north
and men realized that not one but two
patriarchs of liberty had departed on
the day when hearts were bounding with
Joy over blessings which sires of for
mer age had handed down-that almost
simultaneously these two had been
translated in the midst of the acclama-
tlons of millions to the Judgment of
their God. Had steeds and chariots of
fire descended TO take up these partners
in earthly fame and co-heirs of eternity,
it might perhaps have been moro won
derful but not more glorious.
AS the news spread over the land tc
the villages and the hamlets, it raised
everywhere a thrill of emotion such as
has never been caused by any public
event. II was not the wall of grief.
such as is drawn forth by The sense of
The advanced age Of the persons, if
nothing else, neutralized that 1t was
the offspring of a mixture of feelings,
the chief of which were surprise ut the
strangeness Of the occurrence, venera-
tion for the men themselves, and delight
in the splendor which it would reflect
upon u page of the national annals. Ger.
tainly the fabulous passing away Of the
first Roman king, nearly on the same
anniversary, in the midst of elementary
chaos, does not compare with IL in
grandeur. Men loved 10 meet each 9th
cr and TO dwell on the most minute par
before the public by the newspapers,
and to read the comments raised to
unusual eloquence by the tone of the
general mind.
''Never hasit fallen to the lot of any
commander, wrote the adjutant gen.
eral. ''to announce TO an army such an
event as now calls forth the mingled
grief and astonshmeut of the republic
Never since history first wrote the first
record OF time has one day thus mingled
every triumphant with every tender
emotion, and cousecrated n nation IS lOy
by blending it with the most sacred OF
sorrows.
For weeks the newspapers contained
little else but descriptions of the lives
and deaths of the departed patriots In
every city in the land memorial meet
ings were held at which speakers vainly
searched sacred and pTofane history for
a parallel. or the hundreds of such ora
tions one at least will survive Web
stor's classic on adams and .Teffer- |
SON. In his message TO congress the
noble son of n noble father. in calling
attention TO the country S loss, reverent-