/till I I'll ' 



The Lancaster Farmer. 



Prof. S. S. EATHVON, Editor. 



IvANCASTER, PA., JULY, 1876.i 



Vol. vni. No. 7. 



OUR CENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY. 



I 



Our National Year of Jubilee. 



Never before on any public occasion has 

 Liincji.ster city and county inaiiilestcd tlie zeal 

 and eiicrsiy that they did on tlic late anniver- 

 sary of our natal day of freedom. Everything 

 seemed to be iiropitious, and the opening of 

 the day was heralded by liring of cannon, 

 ringing of bell.s and lighting of bonfires, fully 

 up to the spirit of ,)ohn Adams" prophecy one 

 hundred years ago. 



The city, the to\vns, the villages and ham- 

 lets, as well as many private mansions were 

 profusely decked out in bnnthig and approi)ri- 

 ate devices, and most of them had their pri- 

 vate celebrations ; but, in this connection, we 

 can only brietly notice the patriotic demon- 

 strations of the city. A grand procession 

 paraded our streets in the forenoon, composed 

 Of the city polict! in a body, the CJrand Army 

 of the Itepublic, the Mayor and Councils, the 

 Odd Fellows, the Knightf of Pj-thias, the Sons 

 of America, the American Mechanics, seniors 

 and juniors, the brotherhood of the Union, 

 thi^ K(h1 Men, tlie Druids, the Seven Wise 

 ]Mcn,the St. Miehael's, St. .Jo.seph's, St. Peter's 

 and St. Anthony's 'Catholic Associations ; the 

 lire comiianies with their steamers and hose 

 carriages, the School Board and reiiorters, and 

 many citizens, all bearing appropriate baimers 

 and decked with liags and b.adges and patriotic 

 emblems. Interspersed along the line were 

 the City Cornet band, the (iuarryville band, 

 the Ironville band, the Liberty band, and the 

 Keystone Drum Corps, alternately discoursing 

 martial and soul-cheering music. At the 

 close of the parade a great concourse gathered 

 around the soldiers' n'lonument in Penn Square 

 where the; great historical ceremcjuies of the 

 day were held, according to a previoiLs ar- 

 ranged programme, consisting of music, odes, 

 addresses, historical sketches, oration, and the 

 reading of our great Magna Charta of freedom, 

 the ever-memorable Declaration of LidcjKnd- 

 fji'.Y, the whole preluded by patriotic .and re- 

 ligious invocations and prayers, and interluded 

 with vocal and instrumental music. The 

 parade was under the command of Chief Mar- 

 shal Edw. Edgerley, assisted by Division Mar- 

 shals G. W. Eaby, .John Deiker, J. M. Amweg 

 and their Aids ; and the vocal music in the 

 square was under the conduct of the Choral, 

 Mendelssohn, Licderkiautz and Maiiinerchor 

 societies — the instrumental by the bands. ^Vs 

 this number of The Farmeu, and indeed the 

 entire Centennial volume, will be often referred 

 to in future years, we have assumeil the re- 

 spousibihty of crowding out some of our usual 

 matter to record succinctly some of the doings 

 of our evermeraoraljle Centemiial Anniversary 

 and feel that we have done well. 



The exercises at the grand stand in the 

 square were opened by Kev. Dr. Grcenwald, 

 with the foUowuig appeal to the Throne of 

 Grace : 



The Centennial Invocation. 



Almighty God, who art the Lord of heaven 

 and earth, the Kuler of nations, and the 

 Father of Thy people, we, Thine unworthy 

 servants, come before Thee on this day, to- 

 gether with all the people of this land, to ac- 

 knowledge the manifold temporal and spiritual 

 blessings which we, as a nation, have received 

 from Thy hiuid. 



ADORATION. 



To render to Thee our heartfelt adoration. 

 Thou art the King of kings, and the Lord of 

 all lords. Thou sittest on the throne judging 

 aright. Thou^art the Lord God onuiii)Otent, 

 and reignest in righteousness over the King- 

 doms of the earth. Thou doest Thy will in 

 the armies of heaven ; and among the iuhab- 

 itauts of this our lower world there is none 



that can stay Thy hand. Thine, O Lord, is 

 the greatness, and the power, and the glory, 

 and the vict<ny, and the majesty, for all that 

 is in heav(Mi and in the earth is Thine ; Thine 

 is the Kingdom, O Lord, and Thou art exalted 

 as Head above all. Thou alone .art the gov- 

 ei-nor of the nation, and all Thy creatures on 

 earth and in heaven bow with reverence be- 

 fore Thy throne, and acknowledge Thee to be 

 the liOrd. 



I'ONKKSSION. 



AVc appear with humility, and confess our 

 sins before Thee. W*^ are not righteoius. Thy 

 holy laws we have not kejit. We are sinners 

 in Thy sight. Our individual transgressions 

 cannot be numbered, and the sins of the na- 

 tion are many and great. AVe have rebelled 

 against Thy rightfid authority over us. We 

 have taken other gods before Thee. We have 

 chosen our own way, and foUowt'd our own 

 will, and preferred our own pleasure. We 

 have not always encpiired after Thy will, nor 

 made Thy law our delight. We have lived in 

 unbelief and im]ienitenee ; we have resisted 

 Thy grace, refused Thy call.s, misimproved 

 our oppoitiuiities. We have not duly honored 

 Thy church, nor loved Thy word, nor valued 

 Thy gosi)el. We have, in many ways, heaped 

 reproach upon Thy dear Son, our Saviotu', and 

 we have not reverently accepted the way of 

 salvation which he has provided for us. In- 

 iquity prevails in high and iu low places. 

 Hypocrisy, self-righteousness and pride — cov- 

 ctousness, di.shonesty and coriaiption — envy, 

 ill-will, malice, and all other sins abound. 

 AVe are not as distinguished among the na- 

 tions for holy obedience as we are for our great 

 blessings. O Lord, have mercy upon us, have 

 mercy upon us, and cast us not away from 

 Thy presence, on account of our sins. 



TnANK.SGIVINa. 



AVe render to Thee our hearty thanks that 

 notwithstanding our sins. Thy mercies have 

 followed us, as a nation, from the beginning 

 to this d;ty. Thou wast with our fathers as 

 they left the graves of their ancestors hi the 

 old world, to seek a home for themselves and 

 for their children, iu the new. Out of a little 

 one Thou didst make a great nation. Thou 

 didst give to the fathers of our nation wis- 

 dom to found free institutions of government, 

 by which the lives, the liberties, and the hap- 

 piness of the people are .secured. In times of 

 war. Thou didst give victory over our ene- 

 mies, and security to the nation. Thou hast 

 enlarged our boundary, and hast multiplied 

 the peoi)le, so that as a mighty host, they 

 .stretch from sea to sea. Thou hast Ijlesscd 

 the labor of our hands, so that industry has 

 been rewarded, and riches have gi'eati}' in- 

 creased. Thou hast blessed our schools and 

 teachers that give instruction in them, so that 

 our children and youth have made jirogress in 

 education and kuowledgo. Thou hast blessed 

 us with the light of Tliy Holy Gospel, hast 

 bestowed upon us the knowledge of Tliy word, 

 and hast made known to us the way of salva- 

 tion throuirh Thy Son, .Jesus Christ. Thou 

 has preserved Thy church among us, andha*t 

 greatly multiplied the number ot Thy faithful 

 people. For all these things we praise Thee, 

 we bless Thee, we worship Thee, we glorify 

 Thee, we give thanks to Thee, for by Thy 

 grace and favor, they have Ijeeu vouchsafed 

 imto us. 



PRAYEK. 



To our thanksgivings, we join our fen'ent 

 prayer-;, that by Thy favor, the future of our 

 country may be .still more prosjierous than the 

 past lias been. Do still better things for us in 

 the second century of om- national life, than 

 Thou hast done for ns in the lirst. May our 

 free institutions remain pure and uncofrurt, 

 and be handed down from generation to gen- 



eration. May the President of tlio United 

 States, the Governors of all the States, tho 

 National Congress, and the State IjCgislatnres, 

 and all our .ludges and magistrates, have wis- 

 dom from above to direct them, so that whole- 

 some laws may be enacted and faithfully ex- 

 ecuted, to the furtherance of righteousness 

 and good order, to the sui)pression of sin and 

 crime, everywhere among us. May all true 

 business interests be pi-ospered, labor be duly 

 rewarded, competence be enjoyed, and may 

 all classes of men live a peaceable and (juii't 

 life in all godline.ss and honesty. Uless tho 

 families of our land, and ni.ay piety and peace 

 dwell un<Ier every roof. May our children 

 and youth bo reared in th(^ feaj- of tho LonI, 

 so that, cherishing the prineiiiles of true 

 ChrL-stianity iuid .sound virtue, they may b(! 

 well titled to caiTy on in private and in iiul)lic 

 life, what the pious zeal of their parents lias 

 so well begun. May education be promoted, 

 religion fostered, and good moralrt bo iH'ai-- 

 ticed, by all men everywhere. May the na- 

 tion l)e defended from 'bloody wars, from .sec- 

 tional divisions, and fioin lo(;al strifes, and 

 may all Ihi: jn'ople of this land in the North 

 and the South, in the East and the West, al- 

 ways dwell together in harmony and peace, as 

 brethren of the same national family. As wc 

 an^ a i)eculiar peojjle in our privileges, may wo 

 be equally distinguLshed for Christian faith. 

 Christian virtue, (,'hristian order, C-'hristian 

 character, (Christian living, and for the pros- 

 perity and happiness that How therefrom, to 

 the praise of Thy glorioas grace, through Thy 

 Son, .Jesus Christ, to whom with Thee, and 

 the Holy Ghost, one God, be all honor and 

 glory, world wittiout end. Amen. 



At the <'onelusion of this i)raycv, Hon. W. 

 D. Stauffer, Mayor of T>ancaster, delivered 



The Introductory Address. 



Fellow Citizens : We are ncsomblfid Iiprc to-day 

 as citizens of Lancaster to cnmnipnioiate tlie one 

 tiundiL'dtli anniversary of .\nieriean Indcpciidcncc. 

 One liund roil years a^o our city was a smal! jirovin- 

 eial town, on tlie outer eilifc, as it were, of cinlizatiim. 

 To-day it is tlie lovely inland city of the crcat Key- 

 stone State, the center of the most popiilons and 

 Wealthy aerieultural county in the United Slates. 

 Patriotic and almost sacred nieinorics cluster around 

 us. Herc^ the Continental Cnniricss met, when driven 

 from Philadelphia by the iiivadincr armies of Great 

 Britain. Here was the capital of the State, whence 

 all leirislation for the commonwealth emanated. Here 

 sojourncil Fulton, the illustrious inventor, the results 

 of whose cenius have been felt iutlie commerce of tho 

 world, and whose fame is (u)-extensive with the use 

 of steam a marine motor. Here tho hospitality of 

 our frugal fathers and mothers was exMeiided to tho 

 great artist Benjamin AVest, and many other distin- 

 guished men representing the genius and patriotism 

 of a century as^o. 



We, as citizens of the a^reat city and county of Lan- 

 caster, have much to be i^rateful for, as we assemble 

 to-day to celebrate the Centennial of our existence as 

 a nation. Our growth has not been marked by tliat 

 rapid, nia£:ical increase which has characterized many 

 of the cities of the country, and especially those of 

 tlie younffer States; but it has been steady and sub- 

 stantial. Settled and laiil outas a borough In 17.'i0, 

 the first census of which we nave any record, was 

 taken in 1790, and showed a population of 3,:i7S, 

 which was the growth of the lirst sixty years. The 

 census taken a few days ago shows a population of 

 -•jj-tll, a growth in little over an equal period, of 22,-. 

 OCiS. In no city are there more comfortables homes 

 owned by the industrious laboring classes of moder- 

 ate means. Thrift and honest industry, prudence 

 and economy, and not spe<'ulution and spasmodic 

 eraspiiif; after sudden wealth, have made Lancaatcr 

 the solid and substantial city she is to-<lay. 



Our people jxiseess in marked degree those sturdy 

 and conservative elements of American character 

 which arc the true slrciigthof our form of Uepublican 

 Government, and in which we sec the guarantee of 

 our growth and stabflily as a free pexjple. As a class 

 our people do not look with favor upon the extrava- 

 sancc and love of display wliich are seen In other 

 communities, but which arc not the proper character- 

 istics of a republic, such as ours, founded as it was 

 in the self-deolal, sutfcring and bloodshed of our 



