14 OLD PLYMOUTH TRAILS 



or not I know that the very first rays of the morn- 

 ing sun pass in level neglect over the bay and the 

 town to lay a wreath of light on the brow of 

 Burial Hill and touch with celestial gold the 

 simple granite shaft that stands over the grave of 

 William Bradford, historian of Plymouth Colony 

 and writer of the first American book. Such 

 is the unfailing ceremony of sunrise in Plymouth, 

 and such it has been since the first Pilgrim was 

 laid to rest on the hill which lifts its head above 

 the roofs and spires to the free winds of the 

 world. 



Plymouth is fortunate in this hill. It bears 

 the very presence of its founders above the en- 

 terprise and ferment of a modern town which 

 grows rapidly toward city conditions, a hill which 

 is set upon a city and cannot be hid. Factories 

 and city blocks and all the wonders of steam 

 and electrical contrivance which would have 

 astounded and amazed Bradford and his fellows 

 are common in Plymouth today as they are com- 

 mon to all cities and towns of a vast country, 

 yet the graves of the simple pioneers rise above 

 them as the story of their lives transcends in in- 

 terest that of all others that have come after 

 them. The book that Bradford wrote, as the 



