the tradition of whose grace and loveliness comes
down with the musty records of the past, and lingers like a bright,
sweet touch of romance among the historical pages of the grim colonial
days.
[Illustration: SECTION OF THE DAM.]
A notable man of his time was Elizur Holyoke, and he was of a committee
chosen to explore and ascertain the precise extent of Springfield, which
then extended to Northampton and Hadley. A pretty legend of the valley
is Dr. J.C. Holland's story, told in most musical verse of the Mountain
Christening.
"On a beautiful morning in June, they say,
Two hundred and twenty years ago."
Captain Holyoke and Captain Thomas with a little company of stanch
followers started out on a survey of the country.
"Holyoke, the gentle and daring, stood
On the Eastern bank, with his trusty four,
And Rowland Thomas, the gallant and good,
Headed the band on the other shore.
The women ran weeping to bid them good-bye,
And sweet Mary Pynchon was there (I guess)
With a sigh in her throat, and a tear in her eye
As Holyoke marched into the wilderness.
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