V.

MONUMENTS TO WARREN.

The Massachusetts House of Representatives on the 4th of April, 1776, in giving the Lodge of Freemasons leave to bury the remains of Warren, reserved a right to erect a monument to his memory; and, on the 12th of February, 1818, it ordered a committee to consider the expediency of building a monument of American marble: but the right remains unexercised.

The Continental Congress, on the 31st of January, 1777, on the motion of Samuel Adams, appointed Messrs. Rush, Heyward, Page, and S. Adams a committee to consider what honors are due to the memory of General Warren; who submitted their report on the 8th of April, 1777, when Congress voted :

That a monument be erected to the memory of General Warren, in the town of Boston, with the following inscription:

In honor of

Joseph Warren,

Major-General of Massachusetts Bay.

He devoted his life to the liberties

Of his country;

And, in bravely defending them, fell
An early victim,

In the Battle of Bunker Hill,
June 17, 1775.

The Congress of the United States,
As an acknowledgement of his services

And distinguished merit,

Have erected this monument

To his memory.

Though it stands in the journals of Congress that "a monument was erected" (see the vote on page 544), and in 1850 a memorial was presented in the Senate for an appropriation for a statue, the vote remains, like a similar one in relation to Washington, without effect.

The honor of raising a memorial to Warren, on the spot where he fell, belongs to King Solomon's Lodge of Masons, of

Charlestown. It was chartered by the "Massachusetts Grand Lodge," which was established by Warren. The charter was not granted until the 6th of September, 1783 (Moore's Memoir, 122). This Lodge (Nov. 11, 1794) appointed a committee to erect such a monument in Mr. Russell's pasture" (which was on what is now called Breed's Hill), as would do honor to the Lodge, in memory of their late brother, M.W. Joseph Warren, and draw upon the treasury for the expense. Hon. James Russell gave the land for this purpose. This committee caused to be erected a Tuscan pillar eighteen feet in height, built of wood, placed on a brick pedestal eight feet square and ten feet high. On the top was a gilt urn, on which, with masonic emblems, were the words J. W. The south side of the pedestal contained this inscription:

who were slain on this memorable spot, June 17, 1775.

"None but they who set a just value upon the blessings of Liberty, are worthy to enjoy her. In vain we toiled; in vain we fought; we bled in vain, if you our offspring want valor to repel the assaults of her invaders."

Charlestown Settled 1628.

Burnt 1775. Rebuilt 1776.

The enclosed land was given by Hon. James Russell.

It was

This monument cost about one thousand dollars. dedicated on the 2d of December, 1794, when a procession consisting of the masonic fraternity, the municipal authorities, revolutionary officers, children of the schools, and citizens, was formed at "Warren Hall," and "walked in solemn silence to the hill;" when a circle was formed round the pillar, and John Soley delivered an address, in which he termed the hill "Mount Warren." The procession returned to Warren Hall, where a eulogy was pronounced by Dr. Josiah Bartlett. The memorial reflected great credit on King Solomon's Lodge.

This monument stood on the ground which is now Concord Street, a few rods from the present structure, and was kept in repair by King Solomon's Lodge until 1825, when it was presented with the land to the Bunker-Hill Monument Association. King Solomon's Lodge, in 1845, procured an exact model of the pillar, of the finest Italian marble, which was executed by one of the best American artists, and was placed within the obelisk. This was dedicated with imposing masonic ceremonial. On this occasion one of the speakers was the venerable John Soley, who presented the working-tools to the Grand Master. The model bears the following inscription:

"This is an exact model of the first Monument erected on Bunker Hill. Which, with the land on which it stood, was given, A.D. 1825, by King Solomon's Lodge, of this town, to the Bunker-Hill Monument Association, that they might erect upon its site a more imposing structure. The association, in fulfilment of a pledge at that time given, have allowed, within their imperishable obelisk, this Model to be inserted, with appropriate ceremonies, by King Solomon's Lodge, June 24th, A.D. 1845."

At a meeting of the Bunker-Hill Monument Association on 1st of July, 1850, Colonel Thomas Handasyd Perkins tendered one thousand dollars towards a monument in honor of Warren, when a committee decided upon a statue, which it was first designed to place in Faneuil Hall. Other subscriptions having been made, a statue was executed by Henry Dexter, a native artist; and, on its completion, it was determined to place it on the battle-field. The heirs of John C. Warren now contributed the splendid pedestal of verd antique, on which the statue stands; and a building was built for its reception. "The statue is seven feet high, of the best Italian marble, and weighed in the block about seven tons. It is draped in the costume of the revolutionary period. The right hand rests upon a sword, the left being raised as in the act of giving emphasis to his utterance. The chest is thrown out; the head, which is uncovered, is elevated; and, upon the broad brow, and the firm, manly features of the face, thought and soul are unmistakably

stamped" (Cambridge Chronicle, June 6, 1857). This statue was dedicated on the 17th of June, 1857, with magnificent ceremonies; an account of which is contained in a volume entitled "Inauguration of the Statue of Warren, by the BunkerHill Monument Association." One of the speakers, Henry J. Gardner, Governor of Massachusetts, said, on the battleground, "This mighty multitude has assembled, women and men, the statesman, the soldier, the orator, the citizen, those placed in authority, these various benevolent and fraternal associations, all, the old, the young, of every calling and every station, to aid, by their presence and their sympathy, in doing honor to the patriot and the martyr, by dedicating the statue of General Joseph Warren."

This occasion was emphatically national in its character. Warren was also eulogized on the great day (1825) of laying the corner-stone of the Bunker-Hill monument, when Lafayette was present, and sat among two hundred veterans of the Revolution, of whom forty were survivors of the battle. Daniel Webster then uttered before them the following apostrophe :

"But ah! Him! the first great martyr in this great cause. Him! the premature victim of his own self-devoting heart! Him! the head of our civil councils, and the destined leader of our military bands, whom nothing brought hither but the unquenchable fire of his own spirit! Him! cut off by Providence in the hour of overwhelming anxiety and thick gloom; falling ere he saw the star of his country rise; pouring out his generous blood, like water, before he knew whether it would fertilize a land of freedom or of bondage!—how shall I struggle with the emotions that stifle the utterance of thy name! Our poor work may perish; but thine shall endure! This monument may moulder away! the solid ground it rests upon may sink down to a level with the sea; but thy memory shall not fail! Wheresoever among men a heart shall be found that beats to the transports of patriotism and liberty, its aspirations shall be to claim kindred with thy spirit!"

INDEX.