80 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



in establishing an institution so important to humanity, 

 so interesting in a horticultural view, and so intimately 

 associated with the Christian religion. The entire 

 number of subscribers was ninety-one, of whom ninety 

 took a single lot each, and George W. Brimmer ten 

 lots ; thus making the one hundred requisite for the 

 purchase. 1 



On the 23d of June, 1831, an Act authorizing the 

 Horticultural Society to hold land for a rural cemetery, 

 and to lay it out and dedicate it for that purpose, was 

 approved by Gov. Lincoln. This Act was accepted by 

 the Society on the 2d of July. 2 



On the 3d of August, at a meeting of subscribers 

 for lots in the cemetery, held at the rooms of the Horti- 

 cultural Society, the following named persons were elected 

 members of the garden and cemetery committee, agree- 

 ably to the eighth section of the terms of subscription : 

 Joseph Story, Henry A. S. Dearborn, Jacob Bigelow, 

 George W. Brimmer, Edward Everett, B. A. Gould, 

 Charles Wells, G. W. Pratt, and George Bond. At 

 this meeting it was announced that one hundred lots in 

 the cemetery had been taken ; so that, by the terms of 

 the subscription, it became obligatory. At the same 

 time a committee, of which Judge Story was chairman, 

 was appointed to consider the propriety of consecrating 

 the cemetery by public religious ceremonies. This 

 committee reported to the Horticultural Society on the 

 10th of September, recommending that such consecra- 

 tion services be held at Mount Auburn on Saturday, 

 the 24th of September, in the afternoon, and that the 

 exercises for the occasion be an introductory prayer, an 



1 For the names of these subscribers see Appendix C. 



2 For this and a supplementary Act see Appendix D. 



