Survivors of the Massacre Weep at the Sight of the Place.
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GRAVE STREWN WITH FLOWERS
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Two Thousand People Visited the Site of Old Waillatpu
Mission.
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To the spot where two score and ten years ago the fitful savage stole with stealthy step the sage brush among, and lave his burning passion in the blood of benevolence, two thousand people yesterday turned with reverent tread and on a new-made grave laid down their hearts to consecrate the memory of those heroes whose bones are now crumbling to dust. Eyes turned to other eyes, bedimmed with tears, and in their sad depths read anew the history of that fatal hour; tongues that here first lisped an infant prayer, murmured a feverent invocation; feet that trod the primitive wilds, trembled on the brink with age and infirmity; gray heads were bowed to sorrow where once in childish dreams their golden curls were tossed and loving hands strew flowers upon that sacred spot.
The memory of Whitman has been so deeply engraved upon the minds of the people of the northwest that it will never be effaced, even when the marble shaft that is to mark his last resting place shall have succumbed to the ravages of time, and the events of yesterday but idled (?) to his fame. The simplicity of the exercises were a touching feature; they needed no embellishment - to make them effective. No amount of ostentation could fill the place of the few men and women, occupying humble stages in life, whose hearts were wrung (?) by the sight of the spot which fifty years ago was stained with the blood of loved ones.
Promptly at 9 o'clock the line of march was taken up from the head of Main street, the sight of the procession resting on Palouse. Leading the procession was the Walla Walla band, followed by the Indian War Veterans, under the command of Capt. James McAuliff. Members of the G.A.R. came next, and in the rear of these followed the 400 students and alumni of Whitman college, headed by President S.B.L. Penrose and the faculty and under the charge of Aids E.L. Brunton and G. H. Chamberlin. Grand Marshal Y.C. Blalock was in command of the entire column, and so carefully had his arrangements been made that there was not the slightest hitch in the program as published.
To the inspiring music of the band, the march was begun down main street to Fourth, north on Fourth to Elm and west on Elm street to the O.R.&N. depot, where a special excursion train of eight cars was in waiting to give free transportation to all those desiring to visit the site of the monument and listen to the exercises at Waillatpu, where exactly 50 years before, Dr. Marcus Whitman, Narcissa Whitman, his loving wife and faithful companion, and their brave hale band of pioneer Christian missionaries had been butchered by the fiendish and remorseless Indians, for the sake of whom they had come so far and suffered so many hardships and dangers.
At intervals during the march to this depot, between the selections rendered by the band, a fife and drum corps composed of Messrs. McAuliff and Young, played lively airs to the tune of which the old veterans in line had kept time when weary and foot sore they had been - years, years before - marching to fields of strife and bloodshed, far different from that of peace and plenty which now greeted them on every hand.
At 9:30 an excursion train from Pendleton and intervening towns, pulled into the depot having on board 500 visitors who had come to join with those already here in doing honor to the martyred missionaries.
It soon became evident that the accommodations which had been provided were not sufficient to transport, at a single load, all those desiring to visit the tomb, and the officials decided to make two trips. The first train load left the depot at 9:45 and the cars were crowded almost to suffocation, there being fully 1200 persons in the eight coaches. The train stopped at a point about 300 yards distant from the tomb and the hundreds of passengers, eager to see the graves where lie the victims of the massacre, thought nothing of the dampness under foot, but hurried over the intervening distance and gathered about the platform which had been erected near the burial place.
Dr. N.G. Blalock, acting as chairman
of the occasion, made a short address, in which he pointed out the various
places of interest and announced the program to be carried out at
the grave. The most of those present then climbed the abrupt slope of the
hill which, standing behind the foundation of the monument and serving
as a back-ground for the memorial shaft, afforded a splendid view of the
ground formerly
occupied by Waillatpu mission and the scene of the massacre.
Hundreds crowded around the aged survivors, eagerly listening to their
graphic recitals of the thrilling and bloody events of '47.
Although the river has changed its course considerably since the transpiring of those terrible events, the exact grounds upon which the historical tragedy occurred were accurately pointed out and as carefully made note of.
At 10:30 the vast audience reassembled at the tomb and the exercises were gone through with.
Rev. Samuel Green offered the dedicatory prayer in a fervent and eloquent manner thanking Almighty God that, while the noble dead, whose final resting place was this day dedicated, had been taken from this earth to their far more glorious home in heaven, their example yet remained to incite others on to deeds of self-sacrifice and even (as those who had gone before) to martyrdom in a conscientious endeavor to spread the mighty truth and the everlasting betterment of mankind.
At the conclusion of the prayer
the fife and drum corps played a dirge and the veterans and survivors of
the massacre forming in line, marched past and reverently inspected
the tomb. The lady survivors present, scattered beautiful garlands of choice
flowers over the hallowed mound. After this touching scene the survivors
were escorted to the speaker's stand, where Mrs. Catherine Sager Pringle
thanked the public for
the kindness extended the survivors, in a pathetic address
that moved many to tears.
Mrs. Pringle's Remarks
Ladies and Gentlemen of Walla Walla: I cannot express to you the feelings of my sisters, myself and these survivors as we view the scene.
Fifty years ago yesterday morn the sun rose yonder on a happy home and all of the busy bustle of life. The sun went down on a scene of death and disolation of weeping and wailing.
(Continued on Eighth page.)
GRAVES STREWN WITH FLOWERS
Fifty years ago today we went as prisoners of a savage band of Indians - no hope of escape - all dark and despair. But Providence made a way of escape and we stand here today.
We desire to thank the people of Walla Walla for their presence here - for their kindness in burying our dead, and for their royal entertainment. We desire also to thank the O.R.&N. for the generosity that enabled us to be here and to see the dream of many years consummated. These acts of kindness will be told to our children's children and be carried down to future generations in grateful remembrance as each recurring anniversary passes.
At the conclusion of Mrs. Pringles'
address Rev. Samuel Greene pronounced a sacred benediction, after which
the audience broke up. In groups of from two to fifty - conversing in subdued
tones of the so graphically recounted events of 50 years ago - went slowly
back to the waiting train and leaving the spot where, a half century
before, was located a small missionary hamlet of its half dozen log houses
- the only
civilized habitation in all this glorious but undeveloped
Inland Empire - rode in palace cars over the steel shod "path of the desert,"
to where now is located a thriving, bustling city of 10,000 inhabitants.