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Show BULGARIA'S LIBERATOR. J. A. MacGahan "Won His Proud Title. One of the greatest heroes the United States has produced one of Ohio's grandest sons lies .in an unmarked grave in the cemetery at New Lexington, Lexing-ton, Ohio, says a writer in the Catholic Columbian. It is the way of the world funeral eulogies for monuments, and after all, a lonely grave. The hero was the noted war correspondent, Januar-ius Januar-ius Aloysius MacGahan. known throughout the world as the deliverer of Bulgaria. . - But though apparently forgotten by his own countrymen, his memory is- enshrined en-shrined in the hearts of the Bulgarian I people, one of whom made a pilgrimage to his grave last week in the person of Professor Stoyan Vatralsky, of Harvard Har-vard College. Professor Vatralsky was graduated from that collese in 1S94. He is a distinguished scholar and writer and a highly cultured, genial gentleman. gentle-man. Professor Vatralsky's vi3it to New Lexington was practically unheralded. unher-alded. He arrived there last Friday afternoon and after meeting quite a : number of representative citizens of the tow;n made known to them his mission. mis-sion. Among many things he said that he felt it a duty almost a' sacred duty to himself and his country to visit the birthplace of the deliverer of his country coun-try before he returned to his native land. He spoke eloquently and with much feeling about the noble work and services of MacGahan. He carried with him a copy of MacGahan's letter on "The Bulgarian Atrocities," and which bore evidence of many perusals. The professor frequently referred to these letters when describing the bitter lot of the Bulgarian people. He regards them as the greatest literary work of tha kind and filled with more of that humanity hu-manity which thrills from heart to heart than anything ever written by human Den. Professor Vatralsky was received by a committee consisting of Hon.. John Ferguson.. Hon. H. Cochran and Judge Martin W. Wolfe, who escorted the distinguished dis-tinguished visitor to all points of interest. The old homestead and its surroundings surround-ings still stand in their primitive simplicity. sim-plicity. Mementoes were gathered from all around, and everything of interest photographed. The professor' entered the house with uncovered head, paused and looked with delight and admiration. admira-tion. He visited, every nook and corner cor-ner from the garret to the cellar and maAo. coftious notes, of what h saw Among the many memorials gatheiv.l about the old homestead were a pim of flooring from the room in whi-h g MacGahan was born, stones from the B old spring, the photos and a magniii- K cent dogwood cane which grew near 0 the house and which nature seem:-? M B have especially designed as a. memento B for the distnguished guest. "This -i-an- 8 will go to Bulgaria, and neither kings nor princes can buy it." The site ,,f M the old school house was next visir.'d and objects of interest gathered. Th B party then visited fhe cemetery. I There Professor Vatralsky descended 9 from the carriage and walked with un- a covered head to the grave. Upon it 8 he placed a beautiful boquet and a copy S of the ode which he had inditad to th' P, hero. W After kneeling for somp time in si- -I lence, tearful gratitude and meditation 4 over the grave, he arose with uplifted I hands and said: "I have brought it in K behalf of my people our humble offer- V ing what more can I do? May your J soul rest in peace and may the God of . heaven bless the good work you have i begun." He then turned to the com- I mittee, and with tearful eyes clasped their hands and said: "My friends, let I i us here register a vow that this grave 1 shall not always be neglected so. Let f us see to it that a suitable monument jjf is erected over the grave of your hon- 'j ored son and the liberator of Bulgaria." 8 j The following is an extract from the m ode written by Professor Vatralsky; t A pilgrim from the ends of the earth I V cama To kneel devoutly at your lowly tomb; 10 own our aeor, we can never repay; To sigh my gratitude, thank God and pray; To bless your name and bless your fame For this I came. No marble shaft denotes your resting ; place; Yet God hath raised memorial to vrork. Your life, though brief, on man's behalf was spent: The bloody powers of night, the Moslem hordes despite. 'Twas not in vain the Lord gave you a pen to write; ' Your pen was followed by the Russian Sword, Driven by force that you yourself called forth; So came again the warriors of the North. ; And bondsmen were to freedom sweet ;j restored. ; Your life, though brief, in service high L was SDent I; Bulgaria is free behold your monument. ,f . In ISst Mr. MacGahan's remains j ; were transferred trom Constantinople, .t where he had met such an untimely ij ; death, and brought to- this country by I, the U. S. S. "Powhatan." The body lay W in state in the city hall. New York, 1 t then in the capital at Columbus, and g j was finally laid to rest in New Lexing- f ton, O. Eight thousand persons were present at the solemn burial ceremony. & The streets and houses were hung with fi evergreens, entwined with the flags of J black and white. Arches and stream- j ers bore the inscriptions, "Bulgaria's Liberator," and "Rest in Thy Native 1 . Land." j The orator of the occasion was Rt. ' Rev. John A. Watterson, who paid . magnificent tribute to the dead hero. When preparing his sermon. Bishop Watterson gleaned many interesting facts regarding MacGahan's life from Sister Cyrilla, of the Aloysius Academy. Acad-emy. New Lexington. Sister was a nurse in the hospital at Constantinople, when MacGahan died there. The nun who nursed him at the time is still Iiv- ing, a Sister of Charity of the Order of St. Vincent. The Sister had told of his manly fortitude in his illness and of his beautiful death. He was faithfully faith-fully ministered to by the chaplain of the hospital and passed away consoled by all the rites of the Church. Mr. MacGahan's only son, Paul, is now a student at the Jesuit College. Fordham. N. Y., and his widow resides in New York City, where she is engaged engag-ed in literary work. Professor Vatralsky. returning from Perry county, made a brief stay in Columbus. Co-lumbus. He spoke of the pleasure that his visit to New Lexington afforded him, and commended the gracious hospitality hos-pitality of its people. From there he went to Washington, where he hopes to interest government officials, espec- ' ially President McKinley. in the erei- j tion of a suitable monument to Mac- Gahan. He returns to Bulgaria in the t ran ana win present the matter to the Bulgarian parliament, which he is con- j fident will vote an appropriation for the f purpose. It is to be hoped that Ohi i will hot prove delelict in this duty, but I ere long will make some move toward marking, in a befitting manner, the I grave of one of her bravest sons. |