a monument ought to be erected upon it in honor of that brave and patriotic man, the first who commanded an organized force arrayed against the British Empire in that memorable Revolution which led to our national independence. A large space of land is now, 1882, vacant of tombstones, and these centennial years ought not to pass without at least some modest memorial being raised, to commemorate one so clearly entitled to the veneration, not only of his own town and State, but of the whole country.

It should be said in justice to the many devoted friends of Theodore Parker, that they erected a commemorative stone in Lexington on the spot where the old house stood in which he was born. This stone is of Concord granite, three feet square and three and a half feet high, resting on a base four feet square and one foot high. On the front, in raised characters, is the simple inscription :

BIRTH PLACE

of

THEODORE PARKER,

1810.

I am glad to know that, by the liberality of Mr. N. C. Nash, who contributed for this object $5,000, and with additional subscriptions, a statue of Mr. Parker is to be erected in the city of Boston.

Unhappily his wish in regard to his burial-place could not be gratified. In 1859, he was enfeebled by incessant labors, and a hemorrhage from the

lungs obliged him to suspend his work. He, by the advice of his physician, embarked for the West Indies, and after a time sailed for the South of Europe. But nothing could arrest his disease, and he died at Florence, Italy, May 10, 1860. His great heart yearned for the emancipation of the colored race, but he "died without the sight." Yet, when he was near the borders of the Heav enly land he said, with a prophetic instinct : "There is a glorious future for America, but the other side of the Red Sea." He was buried in a small Protestant cemetery, outside of the city walls, which I well remember visiting some years before his death. The grave is enclosed by a border of gray marble, and at its head is a plain stone of the same material, with this inscription:

THEODORE PARKER,

BORN AT LEXINGTON, MASS.,
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

AUG. 24, 1810.

DIED AT FLORENCE, MAY 10, 1860.

Andrew Parker, born February 14, 1693, son of John Parker, born 1664, married August 2, 1720, Sarah Whitney. She died December 18, 1774, aged seventy, and he died April 8, 1776, aged eighty-three years.

They had twelve children, one of whom JONAS PARKER, born February 6, 1722, was one of the martyrs of liberty who fell on Lexington common, April 19, 1775. His name stands second on the

noble roll of the eight martyrs who fell on the morning of that eventful day. Edward Everett, in his address, April 19, 1835, says of him: "Roman history does not furnish an example of bravery that outshines that of Jonas Parker. A truer heart did not bleed at Thermopyla. He was next door neighbor of Rev. Mr. Clark, and had evidently imbibed a double portion of his lofty spirit. Parker was often heard to say, Be the consequences what they might, and let others do what they pleased, he would never run from the enemy.' He was as good as his word, - better. Having loaded his musket, he placed his hat, containing his ammunition, on the ground between his feet, in readiness for the second charge. At the second fire from the enemy he was wounded and sunk upon his knees, and in this condition discharged his gun. While loading it again upon his knees, and striving in the agonies of death to redeem his pledge, he was transfixed by a bayonet, and died on the spot."

Thaddeus Parker, born September 2, 1741, son of Josiah, born April 11, 1694, married May 27, 1759, Mary Reed, daughter of William and Abigail (Stone) Reed. He died February 10, 1789, aged forty-eight; she died October 9, 1811, aged seventy-three years. Thaddeus Parker was one of the selectmen of Lexington in 1770-71-73-77, at a period when that board were required to perform most important duties. He was a member of that brave company who, under the command of his

brother, John Parker, stood before the British forces April 19, 1775. He was afterward, true to his principles, in the service for eight months.

Ebenezer Parker, son of Thomas, son of Andrew, married, December 3, 1772, Dorcas Munroe. They had three children, baptized in Lexington : Abijah, baptized May 30, 1773; Quincy, baptized April 30, 1775; Lucy, baptized July 22, 1781. He and his wife were dismissed to the church in Princeton, November 9, 1788. He was a corporal in the company of his relative, Captain Parker, and was with them April 19, 1775, also on the sixth of May following, and on the seventeenth of June at Bunker Hill.

WHEN Some one spoke to Colonel William Munroe of Lexington, -member and officer in Captain John Parker's company, April 19, 1775

of the bravery of the Munroes in the War of the Revolution: "No wonder, at all, sir," he replied: "they have Irish, Scotch, and Yankee blood in their veins." We trace this family back to Ireland. The original name was spelt with one syllable, Ro; the first person of this stock whom we find in history is Occon, or Ocon Roe, whose son Donald, born in Ireland, went to Scotland, in the beginning of the eleventh century, to assist King Malcolm II. in his war against the Danes. The King gave him for his services certain lands in Scotland, which were named by the King the Barony of Fowlis. His descendants added to the original name the syllable Mon. At subsequent periods this name was spelt variously Monro, Munro, Monroe, and Munroe. The present name of a clergyman and popular writer of this family is spelt Roe. He undoubtedly is a descendant from the original Ro of Ireland.

The same traits of character may be found in