Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1911-11-09
NEW NEWS OF YESTERDAY
Little Story About Some Cid
Park Benches.
Memories Clustering Around tile ss7ts
In City Hall Park, New York, Led
10 Their Preservation by
the officials.
BY E. J. EDWARDS.

cago Daily News, without taking time
to visit City Hall park, and to see for
myself that the old benches are still
In their accustomed places. lining the
walks and encircling the old foun-
tain in front of the City Hall l am
always delighted 10 find them there;
they occupy a tender spot in my mem.
CRY. And, possibly, l am the only
man now living who can tell why It
is that these benches have remained
for years undisturbed In the little plot
of ground that lies about the seat
OF government OF the nations me-
tropolis
When l was boy most of the bust
ness life and incident of New York
city centered about City Hall park. At
a Broadway corner of Chambers
street. which bounds the park on the
north, A. T. Stewart, then Americas
greatest merchant prince. had his
store. When noontime came it was
the almost invariable custom of Mr..
Stewart, the weather permitting, TO
leave his store for one OF the benches
in the park. There he would have
brought a large lunch basket, and
around him would gather in the course
of the next few minutes a little group
of men prominent in the business, pro
fessional or political life of the city.
Then Mr.. Stewart would open the
lunch basket. and he and those whom
he had invited to take lunch with him
would spend perhaps an hour ting
leisurely and chatting and lau hing
as though they had never a care in
the world. The last time / rem nber
seeing Mr.. Stewart lunching In the
park he had with him Fernando 'ood,
then serving his third term as layor
of New York; Daniel L. Sickle, then
a member of congress and destined to
play an important role at the battle
of Gettysburg, and Charles A. Dana.
then managing editor of the New
York Tribune. I can see Mr.. Stewart
now, in the center of the little group,
his alert eyes peeping out from un'
der the brim Of his little low-crowned
hat, his little turned-up nose appar.
emily trying to make connection with
the brim.
This was of antebellum happening,
\ little later, when the Civil war
broke out, a recruiting station was
opened in the lower end of the park.
From that end, too, companies and
regiments OF soldiers started to the
front, and on the benches round about
the soldiers were accustomed to re.
ceive the members OF their families
and their friends for the last good.
bys. There my father sat after his
enlistment, awaiting the coming OF
my mother and myself. There he bade
us good-by. And 1t was a permanent
good-by, for he was killed in battle.
"Ten years later, l should say.
learned one day that 1t was the inten.
ton of one of the city officials to have
these benches, around which clustered
so many historic and romantic asso.
Citations, removed from the park. II
seemed to me that what he purposed
doing was almost in the nature OF a
sacrilege, and determined to do what
/ could to prevent IL. / called upon
Mr.. Dana, then editor OF the New
York Sun, whose editorial windows
overlooked the park. asked him if
he recalled the time when he and
Mr.. Stewart and others made those
benches their noontime luncheon
headquarters. l reminded him of the
many pathetic, the many final part
ings that had taken place on those
benches during the war days Then
I told him of the plan that was on foot
for the removal of the benches, and
l closed by stating that it seemed to
me that, for associations sake. the
benches should be left where they
were.
i think so, too said Mr.. Dana
most emphatically. I wish you would
write letter to the Sun, setting forth
this matter exactly as you have told
it to me. If you will do SO, | will
print the letter upon the editorial
page of the Sun, and speak of it in ap
prevail in the editorial column.
think that will keep the benches
where they are
Il gladly followed Mr.. Dana's sug
gestion; he fulfilled his part of the
compact, and to my joy the effect was
exactly what he believed it would
be-"
Copyright. 1911. by E. j. Edwards All
Rights Reseryed)