Show 7 kaff 1 1 r t h r A M ia T yaco T by ELMO SCOTT WATSON P F ALL the events in 1927 f M which have marked the one hundred fiftieth anniversary niver sary of the critical year of the revolution t S few have commemorated more appropriately the worldwide world wide significance of the amer fean alfin art anric for or freedom than those in walli the name of thaddeus kos cl uzl 0 has figured hla name and tame fame were revived summer when press dispatches carried the news that the bronze urn contal containing ning the heart of this polish patriot and friend of american freedom tod had been reclaimed by his native land they were revived at the sara toga celebration in new york last mouth when ft hen honors were paid among others to this youth whose organizing writ work won von for him the title of 0 feather fF father ather of american artillery and who selected and planned the fortification of bemis heights which had such an important part in Bur goynes defeat it was vt nt the saratoga celebration too that there was launched a nationwide campaign among teachers and school children of america to raise funds for the endowment of a scholarship schol ir to 0 o be known as the george washington scholarship of the hosel foundation which will provide 1000 TO OtO for the education alternately of a student from poland at an amerlean american university and of an american student at a polish university thus will he be perpetuated not only the oft off repeated wish of kosciuszko Kosc luszko let us give our children a good education with the virtues of justice and honor but also the memory of the splendid friendship between him and the leader of the continental army who once declared to hla his care and sedulous appreciation pre clation thi the american people are indebted for the defenses of west po poil for it was Kow luszko who planned the fortifications on oa the hudson and who when it was later decided to found a training school to fo future american officers urged that west point be chosen as the site hut but niest most impressive of all the events which have served to recall the name of Kosc kosciuszko luszko was the celebration on october 16 when a new statue of him bin was wai unveiled in thoi the jublle hardem in boston the statue was the gift to boston of the polish people of new england who raised a fund fond of for that purpose and on that day more than americans americana of polish ancestry marched la in the parade at the head bead of which were carried both the stars stare and stripes and the rit national ional colors of poland to the elte eite of the statue where the unveiling and dedication took place in the presence of many distinguished guests this memorial Is the work of mrs theo A ruggles buggies kitson of from fram ingham mass noted for her own sculptured pieces including the volunteer at newburyport mass another at vicksburg miss the spanish war students at minn and schenectady N Y and the bickerdyke statue at galesburg ill III as well no as for the fact that she Is the wife of henry H kitson creator of the lexington minute men and the robert burns statue in the fenway the date sunday october 16 of the unveiling of this statue was especially significant it was on october 17 1817 that the polish champion then at the age of seventy one years met his death by a fall from his horse an vent event which the poet campbell has made historic with his rope hope for a season bade the world farewell and freedom shrieked as fell the date however was selected more particularly because it was on october 18 1770 that kosciuszko Kos Kosc duszko luszko landed in new york with the french expedition to aid the colonies so the one hundred fifty first anniversary of his beginning a new fight for freedom and the one hundred tenth anniversary of the end of hla his long struggle in the cause of liberty saw a great patriotic gathering to honor him the whole envier of kosciuszko Kos duszko was dedicated to the single purpose of human liberty like kossuth the hungarian lafayette the frenchman and others he was far in advance of 0 his time ile he was born february 12 the birthday of another great exponent of freedom in the year 1740 in a part of lithuania it was at a time when poland was exhausted by wars not wars wars for the betterment of the peoples ot of europe but conflicts between ambitious sovereigns ills his father was a man of noble birth and large estates the young kosciuszko Kos Kosc duszko luszko attended the jesuit college in his big home t alwn awn and in 1764 entered the corps ot of cadets cabets tn in the royal school of warsaw during his vacations at home he talked with the peasants on hla his fathers estate learned of their discontent and in his mind the seed need of protest against tyranny began to ta grow later he went to france where he studied military engineering especially fortifications a study which was waa to bring him fame at the age of ty eight he returned to poland to find the family fortunes in the hands of a spendthrift older brother and rapidly disappearing in the meantime the first partition of poland had taken place and polish estate were being confiscated by the russians who were overrunning me country having heard of the rebellion of the american colonies against the brittino BrIt tilo aking kos hog gluszko resolved to cast hla his lot with them ile he arrived in philadelphia soon boon after the signing of the declaration of independence having mortgaged his hl patrimony and borrowed ducati to get there ile he seems to have hav made the acquaintance of franklin either in trance france or after hla his arrival in philadelphia tor for we next hear of him presenting himself and a letter of introduction tro from franklin to his excellency cel lency george washington to lo october 1770 what can you do I 1 asked washington according to the familiar story try me and we shall see eee was response so washington made him a colonel of engineers and from october 1776 to april 1777 he was busy fortifying philadelphia continuing the work there that he had undertaken before his bis services had bad been accepted then he joined gates army tn in the north and pei performed the services at saratoga and west point already referred to later he was of invaluable assistance to general greene as chief engineer tn in the southern bouthern campaign and it Is said that greenes Gre eues escape from cornwallis Cornwall ls during his memorable retreat wai due largely to the work of the polish officer in constructing pontoon bridges which allowed greenes army to cross rivers before the british could over take it at the close of the revolution kos eos gluszko returned to his naive land and had a prominent part in the stormy tinges which preceded the second partition of that unhappy country con in his fight tor for the liberty of his hl country he was finally wounded in hottle battle and captured by the russians who held him prisoner tor for two years then he was released upon his request to visit america once more after his second visit here he settled downin down in paris and then removed to switzerland where he was living at the time of the fatal fall from his horse As he lay dying at solothurn Solo thurn switzerland he requested that his heart should hould i not be taken back to his country until the day when poland was tree free so it wits was removed from his body which was taken to cracow chacow and burled buried in the cathedral there embalmed embalm ed and placed in a bronze urn which was waa kept at it remained there until some thirty years ago then it 11 was removed to the little chapel 0 of chateau Clia Rappers rapperswil wll wil near zurich during all these thee years poland had bad been a political football for the pow ers era of europe but the end of th tho world war found it an independent state at last so the heart of kos gluszko has gone back to his native I 1 land to be placed in the cathedral at cracow chacow there to be honored hy by his hl countrymen for fir his struggles in their behalf and in america where ho be also fought for freedom monument in wae hington D 0 at west point in humboldt park in chicago and thip latest one in boston stand as coi con reminders of the debt we ow to this great champion of fumat liberty |