Part Two

DEDICATORY CEREMONIES

I. PREPARATION FOR DEDICATORY CEREMONIES, INCLUDING MILITARY FEATURES

The Commission decided to have the dedicatory ceremonies of the Crown Point memorial on July 5, 1912, and of the Plattsburgh memorial on July 6, 1912, the anniversary week of the Tercentenary Celebration. Formal invitations to the dedicatory ceremonies of the Crown Point memorial were sent by the New York and Vermont Lake Champlain Commissions, and to the dedicatory exercises of the Plattsburgh memorial, by the New York Commission, to the President and Vice-President of the United States, to the United States Senators of New York and Vermont, to the members of Congress from the Champlain valley, to the French Ambassador, His Excellency, J. J. Jusserand, the British Ambassador, the Right Honorable James Bryce and to Count and Countess de Peretti de la Rocca and to M. Maugras, members of the French Embassy and to members of the British Embassy at Washington, to the Governors, Lieutenant-Governors and other officials of New York and Vermont, including Hon. William Sohmer, State Comptroller, Hon. Andrew S. Draper, State Commissioner of Education, Hon. Henry W. Hoefer, State Architect, Major-General John F. O’Ryan, Adjutant-General William Verbeck and Hon. James A. Holden, State Historian, Hon. John A. Bensel, State Engineer and Surveyor, to prominent members of the State Legislature, to Justice Charles E. Hughes, former Governor of New York, to Hon. George H. Prouty, former Governor of Vermont, to Col. Calvin D. Cowles, to Hon. Frank S. Witherbee, President of the Champlain Association, to Percival Wilds, Secretary of that Association, to Mr. Stephen H. P. Pell, to Hon. James A. Roberts, President of the New York State Historical Association, to Frederick B. Richards, Secretary of the New York State Historical Association, to Dr. George F. Kunz, President of the American Scenic and Historic Preservation Society, to Hon. Charles B. Alexander, to Hon. McDougall Hawkes, to Carl A. Heber, the sculptor, to Paul Faguet of the French Line, to Hon. William Cary Sanger, to Hon. Francis Lynde Stetson, Hon. Robert Roberts, to Hon. Job E. Hedges, to President Guy Potter Benton, LL. D., of the University of Vermont, to President John M. Thomas, D. D., of Middlebury College, to President Charles H. Spooner, Ph. D., of Norwich University, and to others, in addition to the invitations sent to members of the New York and Vermont Tercentenary Commissions, and to some prominent citizens of Vermont.

The special invitations included in most instances the ladies of the gentlemen so invited and they were present at all the exercises.

The Board of Governors of the Lake Champlain Association through its Secretary, Percival Wilds, sent to its members notice they were invited to the dedicatory exercises and to accompany the guests on the steamer “_Ticonderoga_” through the lake.

President Frank S. Witherbee and many members of the Association were present at the dedicatory ceremonies of the Crown Point and the Plattsburgh memorials. The officers and members of the Lake Champlain Association took a deep interest in the Tercentenary celebration and from time to time rendered assistance to the Tercentenary Commissioners in various ways, and especially so in assuming the responsibility and conduct of the banquet to the French delegation at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City on May 1, 1912.

In arranging for the dedicatory exercises, no effort was made to augment the attendance, nor to rival in elaboration the programme of the Tercentenary celebration of 1909.

All that remained on this occasion for the Lake Champlain Tercentenary Commissioners to do was to turn over formally to the properly constituted authorities the Champlain memorials, which had been constructed pursuant to law at Crown Point Forts and at Plattsburgh. The exercises, therefore, were planned with that end in view. They were dignified and stately, but did not extend beyond the formal presentation and acceptances of the memorials as will appear from the record that follows. The President, Vice-President, United States Senators, Foreign Ambassadors and some other specially invited guests were unable to attend on account of the prolonged second session of the Sixty-second Congress, or absence from the country, at the time of the dedicatory ceremonies, to the regret of the members of the Commissions and the people of the Champlain valley. The participation of these officials of the United States, France and Great Britain in the Tercentenary exercises had added national as well as international stateliness to that commemorative celebration, still fresh in the memory of all who chanced to witness it. The unavoidable absence of these distinguished guests was in a measure compensated for, however, in the presence of their representatives, who contributed much to the success of the dedicatory ceremonies. All arrangements were carried forward for the dedication of the Crown Point memorial by Commissioners Witherbee, Knapp, Pell, Lafontaine and Shea with all the forethought and care that had characterized their painstaking efforts from the first. Commissioner Hill, and President John M. Thomas of the Vermont Commission planned the programme and secured the speakers. Commissioners Booth, Riley, Weaver and Knapp were no less vigilant in preparing for the dedicatory ceremonies of the Plattsburgh Champlain Memorial. In this they were materially assisted by the mayor of the city, the Chamber of Commerce and the people of Plattsburgh as well as by Colonel Calvin D. Cowles of the Fifth U. S. Infantry, stationed at Plattsburgh Barracks. The people of Plattsburgh purchased and improved the site for the Champlain memorial, decorated the streets for the dedicatory exercises, provided automobiles for the visitors to make a tour of the city and aided the Tercentenary Commissioners in other ways in carrying to a successful conclusion the dedicatory ceremonies.

The attendance at both the Crown Point and the Plattsburgh exercises was thoroughly representative of the people of the Champlain valley, though not as large as at the Tercentenary exercises. The steamer “_Ticonderoga_” was chartered by the New York Tercentenary Commission and brought the invited guests from Plattsburgh, Burlington and Port Henry. After the exercises at Crown Point Forts, the “_Ticonderoga_” took the guests back to their several destinations and the members of the Tercentenary Commissions to Bluff Point, where they registered at the new Hotel Champlain.

The military features of the dedicatory ceremonies are given in the following report of the Military Committee:

The military features of the ceremonies attending the dedication of the Champlain Memorial Lighthouse at Crown Point, N. Y., July 5, 1912, and the unveiling of the Statue of Champlain at Plattsburgh, N. Y., July 6, 1912, were on a much smaller scale than those of the celebration of 1909, but the presence of the United States and State troops added greatly to the dignity of the ceremonies at both places. When the chartered steamboat “_Ticonderoga_” left the dock at Port Henry at 11:30 A. M., July 5th, Governor John A. Dix and the following members of his staff were on board:

Brigadier-General William Verbeck, The Adjutant-General, S. N. Y.

Lieutenant-Commander Eckford Craven de Kay, Military Secretary to the Governor.

Commander Russell Raynor, First Battalion, N. M.

Commander Edward H. Snyder, 47th Infantry, N. G., N. Y.

Captain Walter S. Gibson, 74th Infantry, N. G., N. Y.

Captain Charles Curie, First Cavalry, N. G., N. Y.

First Lieutenant Griswold Green, Aide, Third Brigade, N. G., N. Y.

First Lieutenant Harry S. Underwood, Aide, Third Brigade, N. G., N. Y.

Major-General John F. O’Ryan, N. G., N. Y., came up on the special car from New York and was the guest of the Commission until evening, when he was obliged to return to review the Sixty-ninth Regiment, N. G., N. Y.

Governor John A. Mead of Vermont was unable to be present but was represented by:

Lee S. Tillotson, The Adjutant-General, representing the Governor.

Colonel D. L. Morgan, Aide-de-Camp.

Major H. R. Kingsley, Military Secretary.

First Lieutenant John B. Barnes, U. S. Infantry, Inspector-Instructor, Organized Militia of Vermont.

Company “M,” 1st Infantry, N. G., Vt., Captain J. M. Ashley commanding, and forty enlisted men came down from Burlington on the steamboat.

The 9th Separate Company of Whitehall, or Company “I,” 2d Infantry, N. G., N. Y., went into camp at the Lake House, Crown Point Village, on July 4th, and proceeded on a ferryboat early in the morning of the 5th to the Crown Point Forts. Captain R. G. Hays was in command with First Lieutenant J. J. Kelly, Second Lieutenant Dewey A. Forbush, and fifty enlisted men.

CROWN POINT FORTS

On the arrival of the “_Ticonderoga_” at the wharf at the Champlain Memorial Lighthouse, Crown Point, N. Y., Captain Hays’ Company was drawn up in line to receive the guests. Captain Ashley’s Company marched off the boat preceded by the Port Henry Band. Governor Dix, the Tercentennial Commissioners and the invited guests followed and the line of march was formed under escort of the two companies. Company “I” being on the right. The column then proceeded to the English forts, where the bronze memorial tablet presented to the State by the Society of Colonial Wars in the State of New York was unveiled by Miss Evelyn Witherbee. The two companies were drawn up to the right and left of the tablet which was guarded by a sergeant from Company “I.” At the conclusion of the brief ceremonies, the column returned to the wharf, where the invited guests boarded the steamboat for luncheon while the troops bivouacked on the shore. At 1:30 P. M. the companies were drawn up in line near the Lighthouse, Company “I” being on the New York side of the Government Reservation, and Company “M” on the side toward Vermont. At the conclusion of the ceremonies Company “I” returned to their camp, on the ferryboat, and Company “M” boarded the “_Ticonderoga_” to be landed at Burlington.

PLATTSBURGH

At 10 A. M., July 6th, Governor Dix, the Tercentenary Commissioners and the invited guests were present at a review of the Fifth Infantry, U. S. A., at Plattsburgh Barracks, ordered in their honor by Colonel Calvin D. Cowles, Commanding Officer of the Post. As Governor Dix approached the reviewing stand, the regulation salute of seventeen guns was fired. At 1:30 P. M. the regiment escorted the party from the hotel through the streets of Plattsburgh to the new Champlain Park, where line was formed and the proper salutes given. At the conclusion of the ceremonies of the unveiling of the Champlain Monument, the regiment returned to its quarters. The names of the officers and number of enlisted men, including the band, participating in the ceremonies are as follows:

Colonel Calvin D. Cowles, Fifth Infantry; Major William F. Martin, Fifth Infantry; Major Armand I. Lasseigne, Fifth Infantry; Major Peter C. Harris, Fifth Infantry; Chaplain Horace A. Chouinard, Fifth Infantry; Captain Edward Sigerfoos, Adjutant, Fifth Infantry; Captain William D. Davis, Quarter-Master, Fifth Infantry; Captain Girard Sturtevant, Fifth Infantry; Captain Robert Field, Commissary, Fifth Infantry; Captain Robert E. Frith, Fifth Infantry; Captain Clement A. Trott, Fifth Infantry; Captain Ralph McCoy, Fifth Infantry; Captain Howard C. Price, Fifth Infantry; First Lieutenant Leonard J. Mygatt, Fifth Infantry; First Lieutenant Auswell E. Deitsch, Fifth Infantry; First Lieutenant Sydney H. Hopson, Fifth Infantry; First Lieutenant Will D. Wills, Fifth Infantry; First Lieutenant Daniel A. Nolan, Battalion Adjutant, Fifth Infantry; First Lieutenant James E. McDonald, Fifth Infantry; First Lieutenant Deshler Whiting, Fifth Infantry; First Lieutenant Walton Goodwin, Jr., Fifth Infantry; First Lieutenant Thomas L. Crystal, Battalion Adjutant, Fifth Infantry; Second Lieutenant Charles F. White, Fifth Infantry; Second Lieutenant Alfred H. Erck, Fifth Infantry; Second Lieutenant Oliver A. Dickinson, Fifth Infantry; Second Lieutenant John M. McDowell, Fifth Infantry; Second Lieutenant Thompson Lawrence, Fifth Infantry; Second Lieutenant Sumner Waite, Fifth Infantry—714 enlisted men.

HOWLAND PELL, _Chairman_.

II. UNVEILING TABLET AT THE ENGLISH FORT.

Upon reaching Crown Point Forts, a tablet was unveiled on the walls of the old Barracks at the English fort, built by General Amherst and occasionally called “Fort Amherst,” by members of the Society of Colonial Wars, which was witnessed by the Champlain Commissioners and the large assemblage of people. The following report of the Tablet Committee is of historical interest:

REPORT OF THE TABLET COMMITTEE

To the members of the Society of Colonial Wars, in the State of New York, your committee beg to report that the tablet has been designed, cast and erected on the walls of the old Barracks at Fort Amherst in the State Reservation at Crown Point, New York.

The design was drawn and the details of modeling were carried out under the supervision of Mr. Walter B. Chambers, of the committee. The sculptor who made the Tablet was Mr. Herman Wurth.

The tablet was unveiled with appropriate ceremony on Friday, July 5, 1912, on the occasion of the dedication of the Champlain Memorial Lighthouse, erected by the states of New York and Vermont, at Crown Point, N. Y.

The members of the Society were guests of the Tercentenary Commissions on the steamboat “_Ticonderoga_,” leaving Port Henry, New York. At 11:30 A. M. on the day mentioned, and on landing at Crown Point, a procession was formed and led by the Port Henry Band, and an escort of Company “I,” 2d Regiment, N. G., N. Y., and Company “M,” N. G., Vt., Governor Dix and staff, Adjutant-General Tillotson and staff, representing Governor John A. Mead, of Vermont.

Major-General John F. O’Ryan, N. G., N. Y., Count and Countess de Peretti de la Rocca, and Mr. Maugras, representing the French Embassy.

Members of the New York and Vermont Champlain Tercentenary Commission, Colonel William Cary Sanger, Governor of our Society, Frederick B. Richards, Dr. Reynolds Webb Wilcox, George G. Reynolds, Stephen H. P. Pell, and other members of the Society, and about one hundred invited guests marched from the wharf to the English Fort built under Amherst, where the tablet was handsomely decorated with American flags guarded by a soldier of the 2d Regiment.

Hon. Howland Pell, your chairman, called the meeting to order, and stated that the committee had finished its task, and asked Miss Evelyn Witherbee to unveil the tablet. As this was done the band played the National air, the troops came to attention, and the audience of several thousand applauded. Its inscription showed that the tablet was erected by the Society of Colonial Wars in commemoration of the erection of the Fortress by Amherst and capture of Fort St. Frédéric.

The chairman then introduced Col. William Cary Sanger, who in a few well chosen words presented the tablet to the State of New York. Governor Dix then made a brief address, accepting the Tablet and placed it in the custody of the New York Historical Association in charge of the Reservation. Mr. James A. Holden, Treasurer, and Mr. Frederick B. Richards, Secretary, of the Association, accepted the charge and made short addresses. Judge Pyrke, of Port Henry, chairman of the local committee, promised to see that the tablet would be well cared for. The tablet bears the following inscription:

1759 1912.

THIS TABLET IS ERECTED BY THE SOCIETY OF COLONIAL WARS IN THE STATE OF NEW-YORK A. D. 1912 TO COMMEMORATE THE CAPTURE OF FORT ST. FRÉDÉRIC AND THE ERECTION OF THIS FORTRESS A. D. 1759 BY THE BRITISH AND PROVINCIAL ARMY COMMANDED BY GENERAL SIR JEFFREY AMHERST

BRITISH REGIMENTS

1st or the Royal Regiment of Foot 17th Regiment of Foot “Forbé’s” 27th (Inniskilling) Regiment of Foot 42d Royal Highlanders—Black Watch 55th Regiment of Foot, “Prideaux’s” 77th Regiment Montgomery’s Highlanders 80th (Light Armed)—Regiment of Foot “Gage’s” Royal Artillery Detachment of Sailors

PROVINCIAL REGIMENTS

Col. Lyman’s—Connecticut Col. Whiting’s—Connecticut Col. Worcester’s—Connecticut Col. Fitch’s—Connecticut Col. Willard’s—Massachusetts Col. Ruggle’s—Massachusetts Col. Lovell’s—New Hampshire Col. Schuyler’s—New Jersey Col. Babcock’s—Rhode Island Rangers and Indians.

The tablet is of the finest bronze, 30 by 24 inches in size, and represents a soldier of the Black Watch, and a provincial soldier holding a scroll of inscription. General Sir Jeffrey Amherst’s head is in the upper center, and the insignia of the Society in the lower, the background shows the English forts, and a list of the English and American regiments in the campaign is given.

HOWLAND PELL, _Chairman_.

ADDRESS OF ACCEPTANCE OF TABLET BY JAMES AUSTIN HOLDEN, STATE HISTORIAN AND TREASURER, NEW YORK STATE HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION

The tablet was formally accepted for the New York State Historical Association by State Historian James A. Holden of Glens Falls, who is ex-officio a member of the committee in charge of the Crown Point Reservation, as well as Treasurer of the New York State Historical Association. He spoke briefly as follows:

_Your Excellency_, _Tercentenary Commissioners_, _Representatives of New York and of Vermont_, _of France_, _of Patriotic and Historical Societies_, _Ladies and Gentlemen_: It is with great pleasure that I accept on behalf of the New York Historical Association, the official custodians of the Crown Point Reservation, this beautiful and distinctive tablet which has just been presented by the Society of Colonial Wars to the State of New York, through you, its Governor.

It is especially gratifying to the Association to receive it from your hands, for it is to you, and your broad and patriotic conception of the duties of the chief executive of the State, that our hearty thanks are due for the generous and welcome local appropriations which you lately have approved, making so largely for the preservation, the maintenance and popularity of the reservation.

On this torrid July day whose sun’s rays reflected from these crumbling walls are full as deadly as any of the bullets which blazed forth at them in days of old, my words of acceptance must be brief indeed.

This expressive addition, then, to these historic walls, whose story is rife with actions of emprise and derring-do, around which still hover the historic spirits of the olden wars, connected with which are the inspiring deeds of the knightly souls of Montcalm and Amherst, of Warner and Burgoyne, yes, even of Arnold the patriot, not yet the traitor, full of the memories of the now shadowy hosts of white coated Bourbons, the red attired British, and the buff and blue covered Revolutionists, we accept and assure your Excellency that it shall be our earnest endeavor to prove worthy in every way of the confidence reposed in us in making this Association the State’s representative for this reservation.

On behalf of the Association I now turn over to the Secretary of the Association the formal care of the tablet, thanking once more your Excellency and all who have been concerned in the presentation of this memorial, for giving to the Association this further opportunity to prove its historical usefulness, and to justify its being, and for providing this occasion to exemplify practically the purposes for which it was founded.

Frederick B. Richards, Secretary of the New York State Historical Association, at the unveiling of the tablet at Crown Point Forts, N. Y., July 5, 1912, said:

I supplement State Historian Holden because I feel that it will take at least two to make up for the absence of our esteemed President, Ex-Comptroller Roberts, who was to have represented the New York State Historical Association this morning.

We feel deeply honored that the State has designated our Association as custodians of this reservation. We are still further honored by being entrusted with this beautiful tablet, erected by the Society of Colonial Wars, which, linking as it does the past with the present, adds to the interest of these old ruins.

I will not detain you longer this morning except to call your attention to one feature of the tablet in which I am particularly interested. You will notice that the list of the regiments is supported on the left by a Highlander, a private of the Royal Highlanders as they were known in this campaign, otherwise called the 42d, “Old Forty-Twa,” or the Black Watch.

The Black Watch, the oldest Highland regiment in the British Army and one of the regiments under Amherst who helped to build this old fort, was selected for this place of honor because of its unparalleled gallantry in the assault on Fort Ticonderoga under General Abercromby the year before, in which engagement it lost 646, killed and wounded, out of a total strength of a thousand men who went into action, or a mortality of twice that of the Light Brigade at Balaklava, immortalized by Tennyson.

III. DEDICATORY CEREMONIES OF CHAMPLAIN MEMORIAL LIGHTHOUSE AT CROWN POINT FORTS JULY 5, 1912

At the appointed hour for the dedicatory ceremonies at Crown Point Forts on July 5, 1912, a large multitude had assembled from the Champlain valley and from the two states to witness the exercises.

Seated on the temporary platform in front of the Champlain Memorial Lighthouse were: Colonel William Cary Sanger, representing the President of the United States, Count de Peretti de la Rocca, representing the French Ambassador, Governor John A. Dix of New York, Adjutant-General Lee S. Tillotson, representing the Governor of Vermont, and Commissioners H. Wallace Knapp, Chairman; Henry W. Hill, Secretary; Walter C. Witherbee, Treasurer; Senator James A. Foley, Judge John B. Riley, Judge John H. Booth, James Shea, Louis C. Lafontaine, Howland Pell and William R. Weaver of the New York Tercentenary Commission; and Lynn M. Hays, Secretary; Judge Frank L. Fish, Treasurer; President John M. Thomas, Walter H. Crockett, George T. Jarvis, William J. Van Patten, Arthur F. Stone and F. O. Beaupre of the Vermont Lake Champlain Tercentenary Commission, and the speakers, invited guests and others.

The memorial as already stated was not complete in that the bronze statuary group was represented by the models, as the bronze work had not been put in position. That did not detract, however, from the artistic features of the memorial, which were much admired by the assembled multitude. The platform and memorial were artistically decorated with the flags of the United States.

The programme at the dedicatory ceremonies was the following:

Hon. H. Wallace Knapp, Chairman of the New York Lake Champlain Tercentenary Commission, presided:

The exercises were opened with appropriate music by the Sherman Military Band of Burlington, Vermont. The following Invocation was then pronounced by Rev. Lewis Francis, D.D., of New York City.

Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, we invoke Thy blessing as we are gathered here to dedicate a monument which has been erected in commemoration of the discoveries and achievements of one whose name is borne by the beautiful lake on whose shores we are assembled.

We thank Thee for his heroism and his faith, for his loyalty to his beloved country and his devotion to God. We thank Thee for his desire not only to plant the standard of France upon the land which he had discovered, but also to uplift the cross upon it. We thank Thee for the friendship which has existed for many years between the two countries which are represented here to-day. May this monument, erected by our country in memory of one of the heroes of France, be a fresh token of this friendship.

Let Thy blessing rest upon the two States which have united in making this dedication possible. May this monument by its stability remind us of those strong and enduring qualities of character which should mark us as nations and individuals. May the light which shall shine forth from its summit be a symbol of the light of knowledge and of truth which as States and Nations we should seek to give the world, which may be both a guide and a warning; and may it bring Him to our thought, who is the Light of the world, that walking in His Light we may be guided aright through every peril of our lives.

May the blessing of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost rest upon the States and Nations here represented, and upon all of us who have assembled here to celebrate this glad event.

And this we ask in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord, Amen.

Then followed the formal unveiling of the Champlain Memorial Lighthouse by Miss Louise G. Witherbee, daughter of Commissioner Walter C. Witherbee, as the patriotic strains of the Star Spangled Banner were being played by the Port Henry Band. As the memorial was exposed to full view, its symmetry and beauty provoked the applause of the admiring spectators, who thus saw the fulfillment of their long cherished hopes, that there be erected in the Valley a stately memorial to Samuel Champlain. Chairman Knapp, in speaking for the New York Tercentenary Commission, thereupon formally presented the memorial to the Governor of New York. In doing so he spoke as follows:

In obedience to the authorization of the Federal Government, the Commissions of the States of Vermont and New York have erected on the lands of the United States of America, adjacent to the Crown Point Reservation, the specified memorial of the discovery of the Champlain valley, and are now acting in the discharge of their final duties, with the sincere feeling of gratification that a task so honorable has been brought to so happy an ending.

Our duty has been to do, rather than to speak, and yet it may not be wholly out of place to give expression to the general thought, that the light of peace and safety, that is to glow from this monument through an unreckoned future, replaces the fitful fire of early war.

The shores that the discoverer scanned with painful daring are no longer dark and solitary. He is no longer alone. The temptation to review the events of his arrival here are strong, but time forbids, and to do so in detail must be left to the official record. Nor need we in the discharge of our official functions attempt to portray the full significance of the deed we now commemorate. We must wait till the voice of history speaks, with the judgment of warriors and statesmen, with the inspiration of poetry and the reverence of enlightened piety.

There seem to be moments in the life of every man, when he pauses in his career to recall the past and seeks to peer into the future, and so it is appointed for us to do to-day. While the daily rush of the outer world passes us by unheedingly in appearance, it is yet not truly so. From the day of the first visit of the white man, the eyes of the enlightened world have been upon the Champlain valley and the attentive good will of all well-wishers of their kind who are with us now.

It can hardly be said that the present occasion marks the ending of an old epoch or the beginning of a new one. Peace has reigned within our borders for a hundred years. It marks rather the recognition of a century of peace as a harbinger of still more harmonious conditions for all times between the peoples whose fathers struggled here for mastery. It marks the welcoming of a new order of things in which the old problems have met their just solution and in which the ancient grudge is lost in charity. Standing here beside this monument to the past, and beacon of the future, we know that:

God fulfills Himself in many ways,

The old order changeth indeed when Vermont and New York live only in service to the common good and together place above their monument the emblem of their common country. It has long been so, but it was not always so. It is well, perhaps, to remember the passing altercations, since they serve now only to demonstrate how closely and firmly they have drawn together. Surely this water will run clear and sweet between them and the light from the tower above all fall upon fraternal shores. Vermont has done her duty, and her duty has been a labor of love. With such a spirit sitting by our hearthstone, the future of the valley is secure.

In behalf of the Tercentenary Commission of the State of New York, I thank the members of the Tercentenary Commission of the State of Vermont and all their associates, for the efficiency of their co-operation in the labors that are now drawing to a close.

Gentlemen of the Executive Departments of the States of Vermont and New York, our task is done; the monument before us is at your disposal. In the name of the New York Commission I want to thank you and your predecessors in office for the aid you have given us, and the effective support we have received from you, in the days of our perplexity and discouragement. If any shortcomings of ours are to be remembered, kindly bear in mind that it was our heads and not our hearts that went astray.

That these meetings of officials and citizens of the countries that are represented here will be repeated, and that the spirit of peace and good will will continue for all times is our sincere desire.

Gentlemen, in pursuance of the authority vested in the New York—Lake Champlain Tercentenary Commission, we now transfer to your charge the Crown Point Memorial Lighthouse.

President John M. Thomas, D.D., of Middlebury College, representing the Vermont Tercentenary Commission, spoke as follows:

_Mr. Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen_: In behalf of the freemen of Vermont, and representing the Lake Champlain Tercentenary Commission of Vermont, I have the honor to transfer to the representative of his Excellency, Governor John A. Mead, this memorial of the discoverer of Lake Champlain and of the territory now comprising the State of Vermont. This commemorative light-tower is erected on a site made American soil forever by the valor of our Green Mountain sires. It is our will that it shall stand as a reminder to succeeding generations of the honor in which the men of the generation of the three hundredth anniversary of his discovery held the intrepid navigator, the scholarly explorer, and the Christian pioneer, Samuel Champlain.

Gov. John A. Dix of New York, in accepting the memorial and transferring it to the United States, said:

_Fellow-Citizens of America, and Brethren of the World, Ladies and Gentlemen_:

This memorial to that great son of France, whose life and service we recall in gratitude and honor to-day, is peculiarly appropriate and expressive.

Its foundation is grounded upon a rock, its aspect is magnificent, its position commanding, and its work is for the lighting of the way of humanity. How well it typifies the character and the deeds of Champlain! He had the firmness and the constancy of the rock in his character, the beauty of the superstructure in his life, and the persistency of the never-failing light in the operations of his mind and heart for the service of his country and mankind.

The contrasts between his times and ours, the marvelous changes that have almost entirely transformed man’s environment within the past three hundred years, make it difficult if not impossible for us to-day properly to appreciate the soul-controlling purposes of Champlain, or estimate the sacrifices he endured in the outworking of those purposes.

Contemplation of Champlain, dreamer, discoverer and hero, is, however, for us a stimulant to imagination and to ambition.

To praise him because of the results that followed through the work of other men and later times, is as illogical as to disparage his character and work by taking the viewpoint of the present without giving due consideration, so far as people of our time can understand them, to the conditions and ideals of his age and the obstacles that he had to overcome in all he achieved.

His journey hither may have been for conquest and not discovery. Upholders of this opinion cite the fact that Champlain had with him and used the first explosive death-dealing weapons seen by the Indians, and that wars between the tribes followed.

Yet Indian wars were known before. Was not war the truest expression of the savage nature? Was not the Long House of the Iroquois the greatest war machine of the time? When in America was exploration free from combat, and what was land discovery but conquest?

Let us receive from Samuel Champlain the inspiration of high aims and purpose and unselfish service to our fellow-men. Let us dedicate ourselves to the work so nobly begun by his indomitable will and fortitude in blazing the way for the American spirit of courage and enterprise that so greatly enriched and developed this northern country.

For me it is sufficient to know that Samuel Champlain was the first white man here, and that the knowledge he gained was the first information that civilization had regarding this wondrous place. Moreover, I know that he was the same man whose mind conceived, as early as the year 1600, the utility and the plan of a ship canal across the Isthmus of Panama.

Facing almost insuperable difficulties at home and braving unknown obstacles and dangers in the fabled New World, he made not only one or two, but, all told, nine voyages across the Atlantic from his beloved France, exploring our coasts and penetrating into the wilderness of our savage-ridden shores.

Everywhere he went, he planted the cross of his inherited faith and the ideals of a Christian world.

Faith in God and in one’s self, achievement for our nation and our race, and the power of imagination in dissolving all difficulties in the path of progress, are the lessons that his life teaches.

To an American who treasures the traditions of his country and who reveres the one nation of Europe that to the struggling patriots of the Revolution gave the recognition and aid that won the day and established our independence, what keener pleasure can come than on an occasion like this to welcome with heart and hand the representatives of the great French nation? It was our own Jefferson who truly said: “Tout homme a deux patries—la sienne et puis la France.”

It is indeed a high honor to join hands with the representative of the State of Vermont to bequeath to the Federal government for safe keeping and constant care this noble memorial, with the hope that its never-failing light may guide the wayfarer and the voyager on the path of safety.

To you, Colonel Sanger, this monument is now given. (Applause.)

In the absence of Gov. John A. Mead of Vermont, who was detained at home by slight illness, Adjt.-Gen. Lee S. Tillotson received the memorial on behalf of the Governor of Vermont and in turn presented it to the United States in the following address:

_Mr. Chairman, Your Excellency, Ladies and Gentlemen_: I think it should be made plain that I am not the Governor of Vermont, otherwise my appearance as to clothing might lead some to think that the Governor had exercised his constitutional prerogative and with the consent of the Senate had assumed personal command of the military forces of the State and had come over here to dispute New York’s right to have this memorial located on New York soil. If this were true, it would not be the first time that the “Green Mountain Boys” had invaded this shore of Lake Champlain. However, no such hostile action is intended or necessary or possible, for conditions have changed. This memorial has been erected and located by the joint action of the Commissions of both States: New York and Vermont are now a part of the same nation, both subject to the same national government in whose custody this memorial is about to be placed, and from the United States of America neither New York nor Vermont will ever seek to take anything by force of arms.

During the past few days, since I knew that I might be called upon to speak for the Governor on this occasion, I have been endeavoring to keep up with my everyday work, follow the events connected with the two great national political conventions which have been held, and several other local political meetings, and at the same time to accumulate in my mind the history of the past three hundred years. This effort has resulted in a state of mind which culminated last night in a dream in which it appeared to me that at the point in these ceremonies when Vermont’s share in this memorial was about to be surrendered into the keeping of the representative of the United States, there suddenly appeared on the scene one of the most strenuous of the recently defeated national political candidates and demanded that the Champlain Memorial be turned over to him as the only safe and rightful custodian thereof.

I would be remiss in my duty on this occasion if I did not express to these Commissioners Vermont’s appreciation of their efforts in carrying forward so successfully this memorable celebration which is here completed in the dedication of this beautiful, substantial and useful memorial. It is to be exceedingly regretted that Governor Mead could not have been present in person at this ceremony to speak for our State. In his absence, gentlemen of the Vermont Commission, the Governor directs me to accept this memorial on behalf of the State of Vermont, and to assure you that your task has been well performed and that your work merits, and will undoubtedly receive, the approval of the people of Vermont.

There is one thought which I would like to express to you on this occasion. We are all more or less influenced by the achievements of the past, and through the energy and the daring of such men as Champlain, there probably does not now remain on the earth any such unexplored wildernesses as was this valley when Champlain first saw it; even the poles have been discovered and located. It remains for us of the present and the future to make the best possible use of the advantages which we have thus gained. Let us not sacrifice the beauties of this Champlain Valley to the greed of commercialism. Let it be our effort, rather, to preserve and conserve it in all the magnificence of its natural resources, so that it will remain a haven of peace and rest to which the tired workers of the world may come for recreation and gain thereby renewed energy and ambition for future explorations into the still undiscovered realms of noble art, helpful literature, useful science and honest business.

And now, by direction of the Governor of Vermont and in his name, our custody in this Champlain Memorial is transmitted to the representative of the government of the United States of America, to which, by this act, we again acknowledge our allegiance and pledge our support to the utmost extent of our resources. But while this memorial is thus placed in the hands of the whole people of these United States, I would remind you that the waters over which its light will shine will continue to separate, yet unite the shores of New York and Vermont, to one of which you must always come if you wish to see Champlain in all its beauty, and to both of which, and especially to Vermont, you will always be welcome. (Applause.)

President William H. Taft was unable to be present and commissioned the Hon. William Cary Sanger of Sangerfield, former Assistant Secretary of War of the United States, to receive the memorial on the part of the United States and, in doing so, he spoke as follows:

These interesting ceremonies illustrate one of the great principles which the founders of our country and the framers of our Constitution so wisely made a fundamental part of our national life. To each State is left the care and supervision of those matters which directly and exclusively concern the citizens of the State, and thus individuality and initiative in the development of local spirit and character, are stimulated and encouraged, but those matters which properly concern the people as a whole are cared for by the representatives of the people in one department or another of the National Government. The lighthouses are not only for the use of those who live in their immediate vicinity, but they protect the interests and they encourage the activities of all the people, and consequently they have been placed under the control and care of the National Government.

It was my pleasure on one occasion to hear President Eliot of Harvard University deliver an address on the subject, “Democracy and Beauty.” At first the title seemed strange, but before President Eliot had finished it was apparent to everyone who heard him that it is a privilege, as well as a duty, for those who constitute a democracy to see to it that what is beautiful in nature, in art, and in architecture, should, so far as possible, be brought within such easy reach of the people that the pleasure and benefit which come from beauty may be theirs. This lighthouse marks a step forward in a most important direction. It is true that our public buildings and our private residences and our parks have been growing more and more beautiful under the careful work of those who are responsible for them, but this is the first instance in which an attempt has been made to make a lighthouse a thing of beauty. For this, those responsible for its construction and the architect and the sculptor are entitled to our most grateful appreciation. The lighthouse will be none the less useful to the mariner and will be vastly more valuable to the community because architect and sculptor have united to make it so attractive and interesting that it is a pleasure to look at it.

This light will not only guide those who voyage on these waters, but we can see in it and in all those other lights which mark our coasts and the harbors of our inland seas a symbol of what our national life should be, not only for our people but for the entire world. The lighthouse guides to the desired haven; it warns against shoals; in the dark and in the storm it enables the mariner to find his way in safety past the perils which threaten him. There is storm on land as well as on sea; there are in our national life perplexities and dangers; amid the turmoil of our political, business and social activities there is the right course which leads to the well-being of our people, and there are rocks of error and wrong which threaten with peril or destruction those who do not avoid them. May these lighthouses serve their useful and beneficent purpose, and may the light of liberty and truth burn so brightly that our country, through stress and storm, may see its way clear to such a course of national life as will bring to us the full rewards and blessings of a national life well lived and wisely directed.

It is indeed a disappointment to us all, as well as to the President himself, that he has not been able to be present to-day. He has honored me by asking me to represent him, and on his behalf I accept for the Government of the United States this light, and assure you that it will ever burn to serve the splendid purpose for which you have created it. (Applause.)

Chairman Knapp then presented Count de Peretti de la Rocca, Chargé d’Affaires de France, who, in the absence of the French Ambassador, represented the Republic of France, and spoke as follows:

I shall not speak to you about Champlain; you know more about him than I. Everything around here reminds you of him. And so many speakers more eloquent, members of the French Academy, Ambassadors, Senators, Governors of States, have told you of his spirit of enterprise, his courage, his energy, his force of character, his uprightness of heart. What could I add to their discourses?

But I shall tell you how delighted I am to represent here the French Ambassador. My pleasure is as great as his would have been to be present. Mr. Jusserand told me many times how happy he was to commemorate on similar occasions the beginnings of this country, because the name of France is associated so often with these celebrations by which you Americans show, with such admirable perseverance, your remembrance of the past.

To-day you celebrate the memory of a brave French pioneer who, foreseeing the future, discovered and opened up a beautiful country to the knowledge of mankind and to civilization. Some years ago you raised monuments to the leaders who came with the military power of France to fight for the freedom of your country.

On another occasion, for your gratitude is considerate, you did honor to the memory of the French private soldiers and sailors who fell in the War of Independence and whose names were forgotten. But they shed their blood on this soil where liberty sprang forth, your country, and you wished that a beautiful monument at Annapolis should recall to posterity the memory of those modest heroes.

All these commemorations find an echo on the other side of the ocean, in the sister Republic. They make up other links added to the long chain of friendship which binds our two countries. They induce Frenchmen to cross the sea, like Champlain, impelled by the curiosity of new things, and they discover America. At first they are astonished; they did not expect to see what they see in this country, where three centuries before only explorers dared to venture. And they return to France, like the delegates who came here recently on behalf of the France-Amérique Committee, impressed not only with the future of the United States but with their present, with their unheard of development which surprises our old customs, and they bring back from this young and already great country a store of new ideas.

As Americans who know Paris like to return there, Frenchmen who once come to the United States wish to come back again; for we have much to learn the one from the other. Let us, therefore, see each other as much as possible: the more we shall know each other, the better we shall like each other. History encourages us to do so; our mutual interests recommend us to do likewise. Thank God, if so many Americans are the worthy descendants of the heroes of the Revolutionary War, there are yet in France many men of the type of Champlain, with the same energy, the same eagerness for knowledge, the same uprightness. These are characteristics of the race in that old France, always young, of which one of our best artists has portrayed the features in bronze so that you may see them there, in the midst of you, under the shadow of the memorial to a great Frenchman, who, like all Frenchmen coming over here, loved America. (Applause.)

The Chairman then introduced the orator of the day, the Hon. Robert Roberts, LL. D., Mayor of Burlington, Vermont, who delivered the following scholarly address:

_Governor Dix, Members of the Lake Champlain Tercentenary Commissions, Ladies and Gentlemen_: This memorial having been presented and received with due ceremony, it would seem that the purpose for which we are assembled had been accomplished and that a motion to adjourn would be in order. But a programme, like a table of contents, is a tyrannous thing, and if a place therein is marked for an address it must be filled.

I suppose this to be the last but one of the events connected with the Champlain Tercentenary. During the celebration, in 1909, as appears from the admirable and voluminous Report of the Commission, the dramatic history of this lake and its borderlands has been unfolded and illustrated in full detail by antiquarians, men of letters, orators, statesmen, poets, and prelates. Among the many representative speakers from official life were the President of the United States, the Ambassador from England, the Ambassador from France, certain high officials from the Dominion of Canada, the Governor of New York, a United States Senator from New York, the Governor of Vermont, and the Congressmen from that State. It may, therefore, be assumed, and the fact is, that those of us who speak to-day may not be harvesters but only gleaners in this fruitful field of local history and there is little left to garner for your store.

But shall we leave this stern and rock-bound structure to stand cold and stark and chained to a thankless service in shedding abroad its light for the warning and comfort of men without some simple rite of baptism? Shall we abandon this sweetly serious embodiment of French womanhood to face, unveiled, the tempest, the heat of summer and the frost of winter without a word of benediction and without some act of homage which is her due and which she is wont to receive from the gallant men of her own blood? It is true, she is well able to face undaunted the buffeting of hostile circumstance. Such has been her fate for centuries. In coarse apparel she has tilled the fields and kept her house, and by the proceeds of her thrift has ransomed a nation. She has seen visions, and under the inspiration of heavenly voices, and clad in mail, she has led armies and raised the siege of a city. She has fought behind barricades, and with heroic dignity has bared her fair throat to the guillotine. With gaiety unquenched, she has starved through the investment of her beloved Paris. Through sore privation she has won a name in art, in science, and in letters. She embodies the just combination of qualities which make for fineness, elasticity, strength, health and long life. So, with hands upon our hearts—to La Belle France, salutation and blessing! May she, joined together with her strong protectors, the great explorer, his man-at-arms and his Indian guide, long remain to figure forth the beautiful in art in this setting of the beautiful in nature.

The historical incidents which I may touch upon are such as occurred in the neighborhood of Crown Point and Ticonderoga and the fortresses which guarded the southern gateway of the lake.

It is generally agreed that Champlain and his allies fought their first battle against the Iroquois somewhere in this vicinity. From his naïve story of the encounter it appears that primitive man dearly loves to bandy words and to fight. As the Homeric heroes, when face to face in combat, interchanged long and high sounding speeches before falling to, so did the rival war parties in 1609. Champlain’s account says that when his men “were armed and in array, they sent two canoes, set apart from the others, to learn from their enemies if they wanted to fight. They replied that they wanted nothing else but that; at the moment there was not much light and they must wait for the daylight to recognize each other, and that as soon as the sun rose they would open the battle. This was accepted by our men; and while we waited, the whole night was passed in dances and songs, as much on one side as on the other, with endless insults and other talk, such as the little courage we had, our feeble men and inability to make resistance against their arms, and that when we came we should find it to our ruin. Our men were also not lacking in retort, telling them that they should see such power of arms as never before, and amid such other talk as is customary in the siege of a city.” Champlain, at the head of his men, fired the first shot with his arquebuse and killed two of the chiefs, mortally wounding a third. The writer evidently thought his account of the marvellous efficacy of his weapon of precision needed explanation, and adds that he loaded with four bullets. It would be fair to expect that one bullet would go wild.

It would be interesting if we could have the story of this fight from the Iroquois point of view. What impression did the outlandish pale-faces make upon the defending band of aborigines? What was their judgment as to the ethics of the invasion into their territory? We can well picture their demoralization upon the sudden killing of their three chiefs. But can sophisticated imagination fully grasp the degree of terror inspired by the bang of the guns of the explorers which broke the silence of the forest primeval? What do we know of that awful stillness? The Indian moved with catlike tread. The dip of his paddle made but a ripple. His arrow sped to its mark without sound. The life and death struggle for the survival of the fittest in the natural world went on about him in a silence broken only by the stifled squeak of a victim or the crunching of bones. The show of force in animate nature following patient waiting and reserve was swift and terrific, but silent—the swoop of the eagle upon its prey, the spring of the panther, the strike of the adder. The music of the denizens of the wilderness depended for its quality upon the general absence of sound above that of the waterfall or the rustling of leaves. Its various elemental strains—the hoot of the owl, the yell of the loon, the miaul of the panther, the redman’s love call, war cry and death song—all soared high above the symphony of inanimate nature. One modern political convention makes more noise in a day than the Indian ever heard through the centuries. Thrice and four times happy Iroquois!

For a century more or less after the discovery of the lake, there were bloody forays, without decisive results, back and forth between the French and Algonquins on the North and the English and Iroquois on the South.

In 1731 the French fortified a post here at Crown Point and called it Fort Frédéric. This was only a small stockade designed to accommodate thirty men. It gave place to a fortress large enough for 120 men, and in 1742 it was enlarged and strengthened, being then, with the exception of Quebec, the strongest French fortress in America. And under the protection of this fortress was the largest of the early settlements. Another small fort was constructed at Chimney Point opposite here, and about it groups of home seekers were gathered. All settlements in this neighborhood disappeared as soon as the French soldiers withdrew from Lake Champlain.

War was not formally declared between Great Britain and France until 1756. In that year was completed Fort Carillon (at Ticonderoga), about 200 men being employed in its construction. In 1759, in face of siege operations by Lord Amherst, the French abandoned the fort, retired to Fort Frédéric, evacuated and blew up this fort and retired to Canada. Thus, after a full century and a half of more or less interrupted control, French supremacy passed from Lake Champlain.

Here, at Crown Point, Amherst thereupon constructed at enormous expense a new fortress, the principal function of which has been to make a picturesque ruin and a pleasant picnic ground for the people of the present day.

The blood-soaked slopes of this great waterway were hardly dry before the war between Great Britain and her American colonies broke out and these strategic points on the lake, which were vital as buttresses against invasion by French and Indians from Canada, became equally so to the colonists for safeguarding the valley from British occupation.

Crown Point and Ticonderoga again became the center of interest and activity. The local patriots determined to seize Fort Ticonderoga and learned that the Green Mountain Boys were, as they expressed it, “the proper persons to do the job.” The story of the surprise and capture of the fort by Ethan Allen and his party of eighty-three men is authentic. The verbal form of his command to surrender “in the name of the Great Jehovah and the Continental Congress” has been questioned, but it is quite in the style of his other sayings and his writings. Listen to his address to his little band before the attack:

“Friends and fellow soldiers, you have for a number of years past been a scourge and terror to arbitrary powers. Your valor has been famed abroad and acknowledged, as appears by the advice and orders to me from the General Assembly of Connecticut to surprise and take the garrison now before us. I now propose to advance before you, and, in person, conduct you through the wicket gate; for this morning either we quit our pretensions to valor or possess ourselves of this fortress in a few minutes; and inasmuch as it is a desperate attempt, which none but the bravest of men dare undertake, I do not urge it on any contrary to his will. You that will undertake, voluntarily, poise your firelocks!”

Allen was a primitive man, a pioneer and land speculator. Like the Homeric heroes and the Iroquois and Algonquin chiefs, he indulged in high and mighty talk before the attack. In his day and among his people the accomplishment of formal speech and writing was not common and lent distinction to its possessor, and Allen was a man to let his light shine in this direction.

Ticonderoga witnessed the first lowering of His Majesty’s colors in the War for Independence. Allen says of this occasion: “The sun seemed to rise that morning with a superior lustre and Ticonderoga and all its defenders smiled on its conquerors who tossed about the flowing bowl and wished success to Congress and the liberty and freedom of America.”

Shortly after, Seth Warner and his men captured the small garrison here at Crown Point together with 200 pieces of cannon.

In the struggle for supremacy of the Lake Champlain district men fought not only for the glory of France and her religion, the glory of England and the spread of her institutions, the independence of the Colonies and the abrogation of unjust taxes, but also, and chiefly, as settlers, for the protection of their homes and the validity of their land titles. They struggled, nevertheless, blindly, as all men do, and were the instruments of forces and the larger design of which they could have no vision. Notwithstanding her courage, superior leadership and organization, France was defeated because, as has been said, “a new nation had arrived too great in numbers, in extent of territory, in strength of independent, individual character to be overwhelmed.”

A nation may be the loser in the game of war, but a great race can hardly be subjugated or rubbed out. Quebec was taken, but the Province of Quebec is French, and New England, through immigration, is slowly becoming New France. Scotland and Ireland were conquered long ago, but the Scotch and Irish are conspicuously present with us to-day. It has been easy for the western Powers to blow up the forts of China and gain concessions, and the Chinese smile, seemingly acquiesce, and kotow, but in all things essential to themselves they yield nothing but go their own way. A few Chinese boys trained in American colleges have exerted a greater influence upon China than all the gunpowder ever manufactured could do.

It would seem that there are forces visibly at work that make for peace, and this in spite of the bloody history of man and the huge armaments which may mean the fear of war rather than the love of it. Possibly it was from a willingness or even a desire to move in harmony with such forces that Great Britain, France, the Dominion of Canada and the United States of America found that without effort or affectation they could find in the Champlain Tercentenary an occasion for the interchange of words of pleasantness along the paths of international peace.

In the future, then, let celebrants of the Tercentenary events settle all their differences by a joint meeting by the sweet waters of Lake Champlain.

Men draw from the pages of history different conclusions, for they read with different eyes. Although we are familiar with the fact and the doctrine of the spread of civilization through violence, yet in the concomitants of war, its pomps and trappings, its glory and shame, its burnings and killings, its famine and pestilence, its bickerings and jealousies, its graft and greed and sordidness, its futility to effect its original purpose or to accomplish the greatest good, and more particularly in the nature of men and things, may there not be some among us who find warrant for the beatitude, “Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth.” (Applause.)

The ceremonies concluded with the following:

Benediction by Rev. J. W. Dwyer, of Ludlow, Vt.

O God, from whom are holy desires, right counsels and just works, give unto Thy servants that peace which Thou hast told us the world cannot give; that our hearts being given to the keeping of Thy commandments and the fear of enemies being removed, our days, by Thy protection, may be peaceful.

May the blessings of Almighty God, Father, Son and Holy Ghost descend upon all here assembled, upon all whom we represent, and abide with us forever. Amen.

The large assemblage, including many distinguished citizens from Vermont, then dispersed to their several homes, except the Commissioners and their guests, who boarded the “_Ticonderoga_” for Plattsburgh and intermediate ports.

IV. SAIL DOWN THE LAKE TO BLUFF POINT

The first stop was at Port Henry, one of the five gateways to the Adirondacks and one of the large iron-ore ports of the country. This picturesque village, nestling under the foothills of the Adirondacks, the home of Commissioner Walter C. Witherbee and Hon. Frank S. Witherbee, overlooks the lake, the Champlain Memorial Lighthouse and historical Chimney Point on the Vermont shore. In this town is located the principal office of Witherbee, Sherman & Company, extensive iron producers and donors to the State of New York of the lands on which are situated the Crown Point Forts. It has a public library and other public buildings, churches, etc. The steamer then proceeded northward past Westport and Essex, attractive summer resorts on the west shore of the lake and also past Thompson’s Point, Cedar Beach and other resorts on the east shore of the lake to Burlington, which rises above the blue waters of the lake in some such manner as does Naples above the blue Mediterranean. It has its beautiful semicircular bay with its two arms, projecting far out into the lake, similar to the beautiful bay of Naples with its Sorrento and Posilipo, projecting far out into the sea. It has its University, as has Naples, which has been a center of learning and culture for many years. It rises less precipitously and with more uniform gradation from the margin of the lake to the college campus, where the University buildings crown the summit as does the castle of St. Elmo the city of Naples. Its streets and avenues are broader and better shaded than are those of Naples, but it has many points of resemblance, which are suggestive of that rare Neapolitan fascination not found elsewhere. Instead of the active and ever-threatening Vesuvius, there rises in the background superbly beautiful Mt. Mansfield silhouetted against the deep blue eastern sky. The commanding view from the elevation of the University of Vermont to the eastward and especially to the westward across the lake toward the rugged Adirondacks, rising precipitously from the water’s edge to the sky line, is such as to enable one to survey the width as well as something of the length of the valley and appreciate its pictorial grandeur. As the sun gilds the sky-pointing peaks and fills the valleys with rosy light, except where drifting clouds cast their shadows athwart the mountain ranges and as the placid waters of the lake reflect the overarching azure sky, in an atmosphere—the clarity of which like that on the summit of Salvatore accentuates nature’s beauties,—one is reminded that the Champlain valley presents many views worthy the brush of a Turner, a Corot or a Cormon. In the poem on “Lake Champlain” by S. S. Cutting, D. D., will be found the following:

Oh matchless splendors! never sung nor told, Now golden purple, now empurpled gold! O’er mount and plain the heavens their tints diffuse And tinge the waves with iridescent hues. And now, when slowly fades departing day, The moon, full-orbed, walks her celestial way, And bathing all things in her silver light, Prolongs the beauty through the slumbering night.

The _“Ticonderoga”_ pointed westward north of the Four Brothers, where Edward Hatch, Jr., of Lord & Taylor of New York City maintains a hatchery for breeding and rearing lake gulls and also easterly of Port Kent, one of the gateways to the Adirondacks. On the right were seen some of the beautiful islands described by Samuel Champlain. One of these was for many years the abode of that sweet bard of Grand Isle County, Vt., the Rev. Orville G. Wheeler, who once sang in this wise:

Vermont, thy mountain breezes erst have fanned The brow of warrior bold, of statesman sage, And yet the poet’s mystic waving wand Will charm to life thy bright historic page; Ah such will live, the good, the great, the brave, Will live in grateful hearts, if not in song, Their hallowed deeds will never find a grave, Although unsung their fame may slumber long.

The steamer passed Valcour, where occurred one of the principal naval engagements of the Revolution, in which Benedict Arnold distinguished himself for his daring and for his adroit escape in the night from the enemy. The Commissioners and their guests were landed at Bluff Point and took rooms in the new Hotel Champlain, which was built on the site of the former Hotel Champlain, burned in the winter of 1910. Its commodious apartments, broad verandas and commanding outlook over Cumberland Bay and the lake were admiringly appreciated after the strenuous day’s exercises at Crown Point Forts and the ride down the lake.

CHAMPLAIN HOTEL, BLUFF POINT, JULY 6, 1912.

The rosy-fingered dawn was eloquent with the loud, rich, skilfully modulated song of the thrasher and the melody of the many birds that frequent the tree-clad slopes along the shores of the lake. Nature has with profusion bestowed her inexhaustible wealth of beauty in and about Lake Champlain. The site of the new hotel at Bluff Point is one of the places where this may be seen to advantage. As one gazes on the blue waters of the lake, with its picturesque islands, stretching far away toward the Vermont shores and over to the sloping hillsides that lead up to the majestic Green Mountains in the distance and then to the towering Adirondacks that wall in the lake on the west, he is quite apt to compare the scene with that unfolded to the tourist, who looks out from Locarno on the expanse of the blue waters of Lago Maggiore with its charming islands and the encircling mountains, crowned with villas and historic castles, “a perfect efflorescence of loveliness.” The grandeur and sublimity of the Alpine scene is to some extent compensated for by the broader expanse of undulating waters, the larger sweep of productive valleys and verdant slopes, “set with the homes of men,” breathing the air of freedom, whose heritage is liberty under law.

Amid such scenes the words of William Watson occur to one,

“ * * * * * Beauty, whose voice is earth and sea and air, * * * * * Who reigneth, and her throne is everywhere.”

V. CALL AT THE SUMMER SCHOOL, REVIEW OF THE FIFTH INFANTRY REGIMENT, U. S. A., AT PLATTSBURGH BARRACKS, TOUR OF THE CITY, RECEPTION GIVEN BY THE HON. SMITH M. WEED AND LUNCHEON AT THE FOUQUET HOUSE

The morning hours quickly passed and the Champlain Commissioners and their guests were waited upon by a delegation of citizens of Plattsburgh.

The Commissioners, Governor Dix, Count de Peretti de la Rocca, and other guests left the Hotel Champlain in automobiles at 10 o’clock, under the escort of the Reception Committee of the Chamber of Commerce of Plattsburgh, headed by Mayor Andrew G. Senecal. They were driven to the Catholic Summer School at Cliff Haven, where they were formally received by Rev. Father D. J. Hickey, President of the Summer School, who delivered the following address:

_Your Excellency_: In the name of the trustees and patrons of the Catholic Summer School of America I welcome you to Cliff Haven. Through eighteen years of the twenty-one years of existence of this school we have been honored and inspired by the visits of all the Presidents of the country from the lamented President McKinley to the present President Taft. Through these years we have been also visited by every Governor of the Empire State, and it has been our happy privilege to extend to them the best reception possible. While we welcomed the Chief Executives of our country with joy, it has always been our supreme pleasure to welcome the Governors of our own state, as our school is under the charge of the State Board of Regents over which you preside. We have found in their visits an inspiration and encouragement in our educational work.

Your Excellency, I regret that your visit could not have been later. This is the first week of our summer session, and instead of hundreds, thousands would have joined in this reception. The scope of our work is high and broad. We have the best lecturers we can secure to bring before us in a learned and sound manner all that we should know in the domain of History, Literature, Art, Science, Political Economy and the leading social questions. Last year 3,500 visited the school during its session. Thirty-seven states were represented among its guests; so you see, the school and its work are well known and appreciated throughout our land. We combine here at Cliff Haven, the intellectual and the social in a high degree, and the intellectual and social are both protected and permeated by a religious spirit unobtrusive but all-pervading.

Whatever promotes the well-being and uplift of the citizens of this country, and especially of this great Empire State over which you preside; whatever goes to make an enlightened and safe people; whatever promotes, protects and preserves the sound principles of the founders of our great Republic, must be dear to your Excellency and deserve your inspiration. This we all feel to-day in your presence here, in spite of your many laborious and pressing duties. While I invited you, I feel that your presence to-day is due to the persuasive eloquence of one of our trustees, Judge John B. Riley, who is also a member of the Champlain Tercentenary Commission.

In the name of the trustees and patrons of the Catholic Summer School of America I again welcome you to Cliff Haven. (Applause.)

Appropriate response was made thereto by his Excellency, Gov. John A. Dix.

The party was then driven to the Plattsburgh Barracks, where the Fifth Infantry, U. S. A., on dress parade, under command of Col. Calvin D. Cowles, was reviewed, and the cannon thundered forth salutes in honor of the Governor and of Count de Peretti de la Rocca, of the French Embassy at Washington. It was an imposing sight and a reminder of the brilliant review of the same and other regiments and the Canadian troops, on the same parade grounds, by President William H. Taft, Ambassador Jusserand, Ambassador Bryce and Governors Hughes and Prouty, July 7, 1909.

Thereafter, a tour was made of the city, in which the party was shown the graves of Captain George Downie and other British officers, who had fallen in the battle of Plattsburgh. The Commissioners and other guests were then formally received in the beautiful home of the Hon. Smith M. Weed, on Cumberland avenue, which is situate near the Champlain Memorial. Mr. and Mrs. George S. Weed assisted in the reception of the distinguished guests. The guests were interested in seeing in Mr. Weed’s library the noted painting of “The Battle of Lake Champlain,” by Julian Oliver Davidson, a copy of which may be seen in the original Report of this Commission.

At the close of the reception, the Commissioners and guests were given a luncheon under the auspices of the Chamber of Commerce, at the Fouquet House, which stands on the site of the old Stage House occupied by Major-Gen. Benjamin Mooers, of Revolutionary military fame, who commanded the militia in the land engagement at the Battle of Plattsburgh. Judge and Commissioner John B. Riley presided and extended to the Commissioners and to the guests a hearty welcome. At the conclusion of the luncheon, the Commissioners and their guests were escorted by a platoon of mounted police, the entire Fifth Infantry, U. S. A., under command of Col. Cowles and staff, through the principal streets, whose buildings were beautifully decorated. Following the fifty automobiles containing the party were the Guard of Honor of the Society of St. Jean Baptiste, and the Horicon, Rescue and Lafayette Hose Companies. They proceeded to the site of the Champlain Memorial statue, where a platform for the speakers and guests had been erected, decorated with white and blue and the fleur-de-lis of France. Seats had also been provided for the general public.

VI. DEDICATORY CEREMONIES OF THE CHAMPLAIN MEMORIAL STATUE AT PLATTSBURGH, N. Y., JULY 6, 1912

The dedicatory ceremonies, over which Chairman H. Wallace Knapp presided, were opened with music by the Fifth Infantry, U. S. A. Band. The Invocation was pronounced by Rev. H. P. LeF. Grabau, Rector of the Episcopal Church of Plattsburgh.

The Champlain memorial was then unveiled by Miss Katharine M. Booth, daughter of Judge and Commissioner John H. Booth of Plattsburgh, as “The Star Spangled Banner” was being played by the band. As the Stars and Stripes were drawn from the statue and it was revealed to view, a shout of applause broke forth from the enthusiastic assembly. Then followed a salute fired by the Fifth Infantry of the U. S. A.

The Commissioners had the memorial draped with the historic flag owned by Dr. George F. Kunz of New York City, President of the Scenic and Historic Preservation Society of New York, which had been offered for the occasion and accepted. That flag had flown from the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris on July 4, 1900, when the Lafayette statue by Paul Bartlett was presented by the school children of America to the French nation. It was also used at the dedication of Stony Point Park on the Hudson, and on the funeral train when the remains of Governor Clinton were transferred from New York to Kingston.

Senator H. Wallace Knapp, Chairman of the New York Lake Champlain Tercentenary Commission, then delivered the following address:

_Your Excellency, Governor Dix, Ladies and Gentlemen_: We are assembled on an historical spot that may properly lay claim to official recognition, for associations connected with the progress of humanity in the Champlain Valley and this vicinity are especially to be distinguished for the important events that are known to have proceeded from the subject that we are here to recall.

The battles of Valcour and Plattsburgh, and the maintenance here of a permanent military post, are vitally connected with conditions attending the passing through the lake of the first white man.

The patriotic spirit has never slumbered here. The sons of this county and of the city of Plattsburgh who have dedicated their lives to the service of their country, in the army and navy and in civic councils form a long roll of distinguished honor. They have upheld the integrity of their country in every quarter of the globe, and their deeds are glowing on the pages of history. And this public service has been continuous since the first settlement here. This record has not been interrupted. Here surely, then, our Memorial may be safely entrusted to fulfill its purpose and we may leave it here, as in its long appointed home, telling to the future, with voiceless eloquence, the meaning of the scene that appears before us.

For when we have gone away there will appear in the ensuing quiet a significance here that can hardly be discerned through the sounds and the pageantry of the present hour. Now we look upon the brave soldier, the intrepid sailor, the grand discoverer, the wise administrator, the successful courtier, and the gallant friend of kings. But when we are here alone and undistracted we shall recognize a deeper and more abiding import. We shall recall his unfailing goodness of heart, his helpful and untiring care for his associates, his generous mercy to the traitor, Vignan, his motto that the saving of one soul was more worthy of endeavor than the conquest of an empire. We shall know Champlain as the devoted lover of his fellow-man, and in this philosophy we shall find the basic motive of his career, and indeed I think it is for the charm of such qualities shining through virile manhood that we most love to remember him. The Spanish conquerors were strong and venturesome, but there is no gathering of many peoples to do honor to their memory; no songs are sung for Cortez and Pizarro.

Our Monument will always be an inspiring influence for good and as time goes on, piety and poesy and song will enrich the memory of our hero, and romance will cast a halo around his deeds. It is perhaps from such beginnings that all the great epics of the world have been developed, yet none of them, it is safe to say, have proceeded from a nobler basis of character and action.

We are inaugurating our Memorial under happy conditions. A century of peace between France, England, and America bespeaks a perpetuity of good will. Their representatives have taken part in all the important functions of the Tercentenary observances and they are here to-day with messages of cheer and friendship.

At Crown Point on May 3d of this year, Mr. Hanotaux, who led the French delegation entrusted with the presentation of the bust, “La France”, to the United States, remarked in his address:

A French delegation has come to seal upon the base of this magnificent monument an image of France. It expresses well what we have wished to say; it will depict to you France, such as we Frenchmen conceive it, and as we love it. It is France as she wishes to be and as she is.

Perhaps it is not amiss to supplement this sentiment by pointing out that we have chosen as the historic genius of our lake, not an American, nor an Englishman, but a Frenchman, who represents to us France and the sons of France as we know them and as we wish them to be. He was for us the crowning exemplar of ideal chivalry, without fear and without reproach,—the first of many Frenchmen through whom we owe so much to France. But such a character belongs to the world. His representation here presides over the scenes of a great historic epoch that will never be repeated. Our house is no longer divided: England and America will never again contend upon the battlefield.

Samuel Champlain was called to his reward on Christmas day, the anniversary of the Prince of Peace and Good Will throughout the world. That peace is now assured us by the peoples who have gathered here, and as time goes on and the agencies of human happiness increase within our border, the silent form above us will tell His Master’s message with an eloquence that we in our day cannot hear so well. (Applause.)

I now take pleasure in presenting to you His Excellency, Gov. John A. Dix.

Governor Dix spoke as follows:

Admiring to-day this beautiful statue of Champlain, this splendid embodiment of genius and patriotism, it seems as if one were gazing upon it through the vista of a beautiful parkway. The statue, in all its edifying beauty, is here before us, and yet its influence and its meaning carry the mental eye adown three centuries of visualization of civilizing events—sad and happy, depressing and gladdening, horrible and glorious, all necessary in the foliage of the avenue of progress through which the mind perceives and tries to understand the character of the man whom we here honor.

Have you, in walking along the parkway of a city’s breathing-place or the lane of an arbored village, at the end of your line of vision, come upon a solitary figure—a monument, a great tree, the section of a home with a cupola upon it, or whatever it may be that by its height and loneliness interrupt and end the vista? Have you noticed that the width of the vista is seemingly greatest where you stand, and gradually diminishes until at the finishing point it is narrow, very narrow?

As I view this product of man’s acknowledgment of his indebtedness to the past, and of man’s ability to express for the present and for the ages to come his conception of his obligation to heroes and pioneers, I seem to be looking from this statue down the vista of a parkway of the three centuries between Champlain and us.

On either side stand sublime events of history, with the sun of Hope and Faith shining above. Here and there trees shut off the sunshine, while others only serve to beautify and embroider that sunshine as it filters through their verdant branches. And all the while the roadway of civilization grows gradually from the narrowness of the past to the breadth and the warmth of the present.

This is the picture as it presents itself to my mind, of the historic event we celebrate and its true meaning.

We, of the more tolerant, more enlightened, and, I hope, happier world, of the year 1912, see in this statue the heroic figure of the intrepid explorer, who was the pioneer of civilization in this magnificent region of country. His was the narrower world, perhaps, but to him belongs the immortal fame of beginning the gradual broadening of the way which, through war and sacrifice, honor and glory, leads to our present proud position among the nations of the world.

Since the plan of this Tercentenary celebration of Champlain’s discovery was so well inaugurated and so well organized, tributes of the ablest orators, the greatest writers, and the foremost officials of state and nation, have been paid to the character and the achievements of Samuel Champlain. Words seem now almost superfluous, for what can be said that will add to the fullness and the beauty and the sincerity of the expressions of honor and appreciation which have been placed upon the enduring records of time.

Champlain truly typifies the chivalry, the intrepidity and the charm of the people of his time and country. The best tribute that has been paid to him, I think, was that of Hamilton W. Mabie, and with Mr. Mabie’s words I will close: “A gentleman by birth and training, calm in danger, resourceful and swift in action, strict in discipline, but always just and kind.” (Applause.)

Gov. John A. Mead of Vermont was officially represented by the Adjutant-General of that State, Col. Lee S. Tillotson of St. Albans, who was introduced and delivered the following address:

_Mr. Chairman, Your Excellency, Ladies and Gentlemen_: My position here to-day reminds me of the story of the old colored gentleman who was being prosecuted for the usual misdemeanor of stealing chickens. When his case was called, the judge, who knew the culprit, looking down into the prisoner’s box where he was seated, said: “Uncle Rastus, are you the respondent in this case?” “No, yo’ honah,” said Uncle Rastus, “I’se not de respondent, I’se got a lawyer here who is goin’ to do all de respondin’ fo’ me; I’se de ge’man who done stole de chickens.” In this case, I am the respondent. The gentleman whom you invited and expected to be present to-day has not stolen any chickens, but he is, unfortunately for you and for him, detained at home by a slight attack of rheumatism, and when I tell you that it was contracted while attending as a delegate the recent national Republican convention at Chicago, you will not be surprised to learn that his malady is inflammatory in its nature. But I want to tell you that Governor Mead is not tying up his sore places with the red bandanna handkerchief. I don’t know how you feel over here, but we in Vermont do not think that the facts and events incident to the present presidential administration afford any man the right, constitutional or otherwise, to charge President Taft with fraudulent practices. I know that this is not the proper time nor place to talk politics, but, as you may have guessed, I am a Republican, and we Republicans don’t have much incentive to blow our political horns in Vermont, because everybody over there agrees with us, and the inspiration of this opportunity in Governor Dix’s jurisdiction was too strong to be resisted. However, I think we had better get on to a safer topic of discussion. (Laughter.)

I suppose that on this occasion I ought to talk about history, but I don’t know enough. I don’t even know whether the battle of Plattsburgh was a land engagement or an aerial contest. The weather is usually a reasonably safe topic, but the temperature here for the past few days has been so hot that it won’t admit of public comment. So I have decided to talk about the scenery. I think I have made a discovery. I have often wondered why it was that you New Yorkers were so much more successful in attracting summer visitors to your territory than we in Vermont. Since I have been over here I have discovered the reason. It is because of the magnificent scenery afforded you on this side of the lake of the Green Mountains of Vermont. You have been capitalizing our resources without our permission. Now you must even things up, and I want to tell you that your Adirondack Mountains appear to much better advantage, and are grander and more magnificent from the viewpoint of the Vermont shore than from anywhere else. If you don’t believe it, come over and see for yourselves. You will find in Vermont just as warm a welcome, just as comfortable hotels, just as good roads, and just as refreshing water,—and other things,—as anywhere else.

And now, Mr. Chairman, in closing, I wish to extend to you and the members of your Commission, the Governor’s regrets, and mine, that he was not able to be with you personally, and to thank you for the many courtesies which you have shown to my friends and myself on this occasion. (Applause.)

Plattsburgh has many enterprising citizens and has had some liberal benefactors. In the latter class, the name of the Hon. Francis Lynde Stetson of New York City, a native of Clinton county and long-time resident of Plattsburgh, will be cherished in grateful remembrance for his many beneficent acts to that city. It was quite natural, therefore, that he accept the Champlain memorial in behalf of the city of Plattsburgh, which he did in the following touching address:

_Governor Dix_: Through the kind favor of the Mayor of the city of Plattsburgh and in his behalf, I take pleasure in accepting from you this fine gift of the State of New York, worthily set in this beautiful park provided by the liberality of the people of Plattsburgh. The location is ideal, overlooking the most attractive and the most famous bay of this lovely lake, which, unlike most North American waters, bears the name of the discoverer, bestowed by himself. To those here seeking for his monument, as in the case of Sir Christopher Wren, the answer during three centuries might well have been, “look about you.” But now in the fullness of time, the accumulating admiration of many generations has demanded and has found concrete expression in this beautiful memorial of the character, the constancy and the courage of Samuel Champlain, the Christian Explorer. This work of man’s hands cannot enhance his fame, but it can and will indicate to countless generations our capacity to appreciate his virtue.

To carry abroad the gospel of his Lord and Master; to extend the influence and the prosperity of his beloved country; to replace savagery with orderly government and religious civilization, he crossed the Atlantic twenty times; he traced its western shore from Newfoundland to Cape Cod; he explored the Isthmus of Darien, and proposed to join the two oceans; he pierced the Laurentian forests, and discovered not only Champlain but also Nipissing and Huron; and he became the founder of New France. For more than a score of years he ruled in justice and equity, winning the hearts of his countrymen and the almost idolatrous affection of the savage tribes of Canada. His integrity was spotless, his sincerity unquestioned; and his piety was attested by his last will, devoting to religion his entire estate of about $1,000.

That we should give ourselves for others, for community and for country is supposed to be a call specially significant of the present hour. But three centuries since it was heard and was followed by Samuel Champlain at the sacrifice of much that most men deemed desirable. Luxurious ease at the royal court of Henri IV. he despised, and through unbroken forests led the way for civilization, thus answering the question of the Duke in “As You Like It”:

“Are not these woods More free from peril than the envious court?”

In the deep fastnesses of the forests he carried the cross as his amulet and sought the salvation of souls.

This day can show no higher type nor profess a nobler faith than his. This poor French boy of Brouage by three-score years of faithful duty proved that virtue is not the monopoly of any age or country or class; and that to help the world greatly forward no special calling is necessary. All that is needed is the faithful following of high ideals. Such was the accomplishment of Champlain and such, two centuries later, of the other great hero of these waters, the chivalrous and God-fearing Macdonough, soon to be honored by a monument on this shore.

It is well that this generation should make recognition of such lives, proving that love toward God and man and its constant expression in a consistent life are not incompatible with the development and exhibition of the most heroic and manly virtues.

But to limit our recognition to the raising of a monument were indeed an empty show. Those who without genuine and active sympathy would build the tombs of the prophets and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous were denounced by the Master as hypocrites.

Life service and not lip service is required of those who would perpetuate, and should emulate the virtues of Champlain.

This monument is erected to him and not through the pretext of his name to ourselves. But, in a sense it must imply a sympathetic appreciation by this generation and this community. Let the deed follow the profession. Self-sacrifice, integrity, devotion to duty, truth-telling, clean-living and love of God and man must be the aim of every man, woman and child who in heart and truth helps raise this monument. The aim I say, but, only by God’s help, the achievement, for to few are given the enduring fortitude and the prevailing persistence of Champlain and Macdonough.

That this monument shall stand and shall continue to stand a silent but effective monitor, teaching the men, the women, the boys and the girls of this valley to lead clean and helpful lives, and to leave behind them memories which shall encourage others so to live, is the hope in which this gift is accepted and will be preserved. (Applause.)

Ambassador J. J. Jusserand was unavoidably absent on a visit to the Republic from which he is accredited to this country. He was represented, however, on this occasion by Count de Peretti de la Rocca, Chargé d’Affaires de France, at Washington. Count de Peretti de la Rocca was introduced and spoke as follows:

It is often said that America looks always to the future. The beautiful festivities at which we are assisting prove the contrary. Descendants of the pioneers of former times on this continent, which they opened up to civilization, you are continuing their work. Animated by their spirit of daring and activity, you are extending each day the field of their conquests, and you are reaping the fruits of the harvest of their deeds. But you like sometimes to stop your daily toil, to come and meditate before the rude cradle of your great nation.

To-day, pleasure boats sail on this beautiful lake, and its shady banks seem to have been intended always as a place of rest for tired city dwellers. It is not without some effort of imagination that we can now recall the rugged Champlain and his strange troop, sailing on the same lake in pursuit of the Iroquois. However, you wished that the tourists, who come here each year in thousands, surrounded by luxury and beauty, should be reminded of their first great predecessor. And you have raised up to Champlain this monument, which does honor both to the initiative of your Commissions and to the talents of your architects. You found that there was in the life of Champlain, as in those of the other French pioneers, of whom your historian, Parkman, so well wrote the lives, lessons which should not be lost. The example of their ingenuity, which nothing could rebut, of their energy, which nothing could daunt, of their faith, which never was discouraged, is still a lesson of confidence and optimism. Pessimistic persons might perhaps point out that these men failed to attain their ends. They traveled over this continent seeking a way to China, and that way did not exist. Anyway, they hoped that the countries which they discovered would become the possessions of their nation and of their King, and now the lilies of the French monarchy have been replaced by the Stars and Stripes of the American democracy. But these are only partial failures and their efforts were not in vain. China remained closed to them, but America and its treasures were opened to them. The vicissitudes of events have caused a change of nationality in the countries discovered by them, but I am sure they are content in their graves on account of celebrations of their memory such as that of to-day: on account also of the unalterable friendship which binds your nation to theirs and especially on account of the confident eagerness with which, inherited from them, you continue and complete their work.

Now, ladies and gentlemen, if you permit me I will add some words in my own language.

Cela ne sera pas pour déplaire à mon grande compatriote Champlain. Je tiens à exprimer au Gouverneur Dix at au Chairman Knapp tous mes remerciements pour la manière si flatteuse at si affectueuse dont ils ont parlé de mon pays. Je veux vous dire à tous combien je suis heureux et reconnaissant que le souvenir de la France ait été si intimement associé à ces belles cérémonies.

Enfin j’ajouterai combien j’ai été touché par l’aimable accueil que nous a réservé la cité de Plattsburgh dont la beauté des paysages, le pittoresque des rues et des maisons, le charme des habitants m’ont tout spécialement frappé. Aussi est-ce du fond de coeur que je forme les voeux les plus ardents pour la continuation de sa prospérité.

The address was enthusiastically received.

The Hon. John A. Stewart of New York was the next speaker and in the course of his address, which was extempore and therefore unreported except in substance, he said:

From Champlain’s day we have grown into the most potential nation in the world, but let us thank God that mere power is not the measure of a nation’s greatness. We have become the richest nation in the world, but every day of our existence we should give thanks to the Almighty that our standing among the nations rests upon another basis than the mere possession of great wealth. We are the most populous among the nations of advanced civilization, but we should thank God that the gauge of our power and our greatness does not lie merely in superiority in point of numbers. A nation like the individual is great only to the degree of the possession of the homely virtues, the virtues of the home and fireside, of contentment and the peace and satisfaction which come from honest toil, from the day’s tasks done in the proper spirit of thankfulness for all the blessings which have come from advantages given by a prodigal nature. The prophetic vision of Champlain which saw occupying the North American continent a great and a mighty people has been realized. It is to men of Champlain’s blood that we owe the searching out and the discovery of the fertility of this great land and its adaptation for the uses of mankind. To those of his own race, who have succeeded him, we Americans are tied by the bond of a common destiny. Though separated politically, Canada, which is the heritage of Champlain, and this beautiful north country which is equally his heritage and one of the most beautiful parts of the great Republic, stand shoulder to shoulder in the working out of a common fate; for no danger can menace the one without the other sharing in that danger and no great national blessing can come to the one without that same blessing working its benefit to the other. Blessed is the land and blessed the people where the homely virtues are still inculcated, where that admonition of the Almighty is regarded not merely as an article of faith, but as a precept to be followed, “Honor thy father and thy mother that thy days may be long in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee,” for of such is the land which Champlain found and the people which bless him as the great discoverer. (Applause.)

The last speaker was the Hon. Job E. Hedges of New York City, whose address sparkled with wit and kept the audience in a ripple of laughter. It was also extempore. In the course of his address he said:

The specific things Champlain did are not so important as his motive. He was an epoch in history. It falls to few men to be greater than their generation. If we are to draw a lesson at this time, it is that physical courage unbacked by moral effort is futile. It is very easy to be good rhetorically. I believe in the efficacy of prayer, but it is possible to remain on your knees so long that you overlook a neighbor’s distress.

It is better to try and fail than not to endeavor. Champlain never felt that he was called—he just went. He never worried about prosperity. He framed his opinions without asking himself whether he was in the majority or not. It is better to practice one commandment and forget the other nine than have all of them committed to memory as a rhetorical exercise.

It is a great thing to have a man’s memory remain 300 years without tarnish—or even 300 days without it. It is a wonderful thing to be great and not know it. Champlain could have closed his eyes forever at the end of any twenty-four hours of his life and have said, “I have done the best I could.” (Applause.)

Benediction was then pronounced by the Rt. Rev. Monsignor M. J. Lavelle, Vicar General of New York, as follows:

Father of Bounty from Whom all blessings flow, we thank Thee from the inmost recesses of our souls for the blessings bestowed upon our country and the human race, through the courage and self-sacrifice of Samuel Champlain. This monument dedicated to his memory to-day, is a token, primarily, of our gratitude to Thee for the favors Thou hast granted us through Thy servant. Teach us all to be like him, intrepid in danger, indomitable in trial, undismayed in failure and unspoiled in success. May everyone who has participated in the erection and dedication of this monument have the grace to direct his own life in the way of happiness and virtue, and also to be a source of benediction unto generations yet unborn.

We pray Thee, O Father of Might, Wisdom and Justice, through Whom alone authority is rightfully administered, laws enacted and judgment decreed, assist with Thy Holy Spirit of Counsel and Fortitude, the President of these United States, that his administration may be eminently useful to Thy people over whom he presides, by the encouragement of virtue and religion, by wise enforcement of the laws in justice and in mercy, and by repressing vice and immorality. Let the Light of Thy Divine Wisdom shine upon the deliberations of Congress, and manifest itself in all the laws framed for our government, that these regulations may tend to the preservation of peace, the extension of National prosperity, the increase of industry, sobriety and useful knowledge, and may perpetuate amongst us the boon of equal liberty.

We pray also for the Governors of these two states, for the members of the Legislatures, for all judges and magistrates and other officials appointed to guard our political welfare. Aid them with Thy guiding hand, that they may be able to discharge the duties of their several offices with honesty and ability.

We pray also for all our brethren and fellow-citizens throughout the United States, that they may be blessed in the knowledge, and sanctified in the performance of Thy Holy Will. Preserve us in unity, and in that peace which the world cannot give. And after having tasted Thy bounty here below, may we be admitted to the joys that are eternal.