May 15, 1979
Page 11320
IMPRESSIONS OF KENNEBUNKPORT, MAINE
Mr. MUSKIE. Mr. President, Dagny Edwards Hess of Brooklyn, N.Y., recently sent me a copy of a prose poem she wrote about one of the most interesting and beautiful places on Earth — Kennebunkport, Maine.
Kennebunkport and her neighbor, Kennebunk, typify the special character of Maine life. They are beautiful places, certainly. That they have been popular summer resorts for more than a century is evidence of their charm.
But they are special to me for many reasons a casual tourist might overlook. Ms. Hess describes some of those reasons in a poem as beautiful as her subject.
Mr. President, I request that the poem, "Impressions of Kennebunkport, Maine" by Dagny Edwards Hess, printed in the Brooklyn Star, Friday, October 20, 1970, be printed in today's RECORD.
The poem follows :
IMPRESSIONS OP KENNEBUNKPORT, MAINE
Seagulls wheeling high . . . cawing raucously . . . circling giddily in the sky.
Houses decked in Sunday best . . . aproned with roses — like hostesses about to greet a favorite guest!
Lobsters . . . broiled . . . baked . . . boiled fried . . . stewed'n'stuffed . . . so delicious .. . one can never get enough!
White, puff -cheeked sailboats . . . skimming along with the breeze . . . Ballerinas spinning a-tiptoe, with graceful ease!
Tides running in, Tides running out, Tides rule the days (and nights) without a doubt!
The rocks of Kennebunkport . . . high jagged cliffs . . . resisting the onslaught of slamming surf and time . . .
The rocks . . . majestic, massive, mighty bulwarks of Maine's beautifully rugged sea coast line.
Hundreds of friendly homes away from home for fortunate vacationers.
Inns, Hotels, Motor Resorts with many charms to welcome visitors with open arms!
Tourist — tempting names: Sleepy Hollow Cottages . . . Land's End . . . The Anchorage . . . Cape Porpus . . . Dun Rovin' . . . Pleasant Valley . . . Meadow Glen .. . Shawmut Inn . . . Nonantum . . . The Colony . . . Narraganset-By-the-Sea . . . these are but a few delightful spots that cater to the vacationer on a restful spree!
Kennebunkport — a tidy, crispy white pinafore of a town with a freshly scrubbed look on its shining face — a peaceful, somewhat drowsy Colonial-type village — yet wakeful enough to be in step with the times . . . an Artist's and Photographer's delight, as they strive to capture its obvious loveliness from dawn until dark.
Picturesque lobster shacks and fishing wharves abound . . . also the sad remnants of old Shipyards with handsome, sturdy boats still being built by loving hands following proudly and skillfully the honored trade of seafaring grandfathers and their fathers.
Rambling roses cover doorway open wide . . . daisies and tiger lilies hug the roadside . . Scudding white clouds and bright sails intermingle with rainbow-hued, reflected salt boathouses on stilts along the placid, winding Kennebunkport River fringed with the fragrant tall pines of Maine.
Restaurants galore for every taste and purse . . . Antique and gift shops all around, rubbing shoulders with the Grocery Store!
Artists' Galleries everywhere . . . no matter where one roams — in garages . . . stores ... or even in lovely private homes!
Home-made Candy Shops . . . where Lollipops, Fudge, and Pebble Candies are favorite choices.
The playhouse summer Theatre and Arundel Opera House — where the voices of players and singers may be heard — vying with the meadow bird!
Other sightseeing tidbits along the way include: the Historical Society; a Brick Museum: ancient trollies on display in an open air Trolley Museum; Country Fairs on cool, green lawns of tiny, white churches; occasional, outdoor Country Auctions, where the Auctioneer's humor is a show in itself; an old Grist Mill by a quiet pond . . . and finally — the still serenity of a Franciscan Monastery which extends a most gracious, welcoming invitation to ALL visitors to enter and enjoy its beautifully landscaped grounds — gardens and woodland trails, with picnic tables and rest benches — statues, shrines and grottoes — truly a magnificent "Cathedral in the Pines"!
All these and more — delightful moments and sights by the score to store in memory's treasure trove. . . . Kaleidoscopic glimpses of the Kennebunks to stir the emotion — clean, cool air and wide, wide beaches laced with the bracing salt tang of the Atlantic Ocean — (if one could but bottle that air for a permanent souvenir!)
Then, there are the lovely wayside chapels and white steeple towers perched atop churches with ancient, Roman-numeraled clocks that still denote the hours . . . A fantastic "Wedding Cake House" with curlicued, widow's walks . . . old fashioned gardens for leisurely talks . . . old fashioned, wide porches with old fashioned rockers to while the hours away . . . Father Time seems to hold his breath in this quaint, Colonial Village that will never know death. (Any place that has so much variegated life and loveliness to offer, must surely go on forever!)
Kennebunkport — with all its attractive distractions — is a potpourri of today's Americana, flirting with the past — winking an eye with a charming, alluring, over-the-shoulder glance!