Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1870-09-06
For the HERALD
MARYLAND CORRESPONDENCE.
Fifteenth Amendment Celebration in Western
Maryland

~hihohNihOubi WulCH OLHplObcu buO
citizenship Of the colored people of
Maryland, took place in Hagers-
town, Aug. 4th, and was one Of the
greatest demonstrations ever wit
messed in our part of the State. Ha-
gerstown is city of the size of La
Crosse, beautifully located, some
eight miles from the southern line of
Pennsylvania, the residents of which
are enthusiastically loyal, and favor
able to every effort to educate and
christianize this formerly oppressed
portion of our population. For
weeks the blacks had been working
themselves up to welding heat, and
the suspicious day found them ready
to fall into line, like a great army
preparing for battle. At an early
hour of the day a fine company Of
colored Zouaves from Frederick City,
distance of 26 miles, dressed in that
peculiar uniform, with two Indians
In front, reached town and attracted
considerable attention. The first
regular delegation came from Will
Transport, town of the size of Lam
caster, lying on the east bank of the
Potomac, being escorted into the
city by Monkeys Band (colored),
headed by a negro marshal. The
second delegation was from Sharps-
burg (Antietam battle field the
third was composed of the colored
race of Boonsboro and Beaver Creek,
distant ten miles, led by the Boons-
boro Cornet Band. Then came del
egation from Clearspring, Indian
Spring and Hancock, % miles away,
preceded by the Bolivar Band from
Frederick county. The procession
was formed in three divisions. The
first was commanded by Chief Mar
shall, s. J. Nimmy, with ten staff Of
ficers. The second was under the
management of like number of of
ticers, and so was the third. The
officers of the first division wore red (;
those of the second division wore
white, and those of the third division
wore blue. Moxley's Band headed
the procession, followed by other
bands, in company with their respec-
tive delegations. The company from
Williamsport, considerably rebel du-
ring the war, had a large wagon fill
ed with little girls black as ebony,
but dressed elegantly, to represent
the union of the States, the Goddess
of Liberty being seated in their
midst. Other wagons followed it
with similar representations. There
was also a wagon in the procession
containing the Queen of Sheba and
her staff.
Let us look for a moment at the
variods banners borne by this color
ed mass of humanity. No. 1, Star
Club. "To the.citizens of Hagers-
town we owe our thanks for their
generous. hospitality" "Star Lodge,
Williamsport." "The Herald and
Torch Light, the Silver Trumpet of
Freedom" &C. G. Fulton editor Of
Baltimore american, and truly devot-
ed to the cause of Freedom during
the great Rebellion,) for our next
Governor" "We support our
Known and Tried Friends" "Lin-
coin, the Father of Freedom" ave
by being Citizens of our Country,
are Citizens of our Commonwealth"
I'VE number Four Million" elm
coin, The Savior of our Country"
"Col. E. f. Anderson for Congress"
"By the Grace of God, 1872-U. S.
Grant and Schuyler Colfax."
The most of these banners had fine
portraits of Lincoln, Grant, Serman,
Sheridan and Thomas. The process
sion, when in marching order, was
one mile long, and occupied fifteen
minutes in passing a given point.
There were fully 100 vehicles in line,
the head of which, after the parade,
was directed toward a beautiful
grove on the Green Castle pike, one
mile distant from town, where q
large stand was erected for the
speakers and managers of the cele-
bration. The vast concourse on the
ground, son of Ham opened the
services with an eloquent and APP
proprlate prayer, after which anoth-
er colored.clergyman made the intro
ductory address, both of which were
worthy the descendants of the Ethio-
opian Eunich and victorious Hanni-
bal, OF Carthagenian story. The
speaker drew a graphic portraiture
of the former oppressed condition of
his race; their unceasing cry to
heaven for deliverance, and of that
special Providence that raised up
Lincoln, not Andrew Johnson, to be
their Moses, to lead them from worse
than Egyptian bondage Ito a land
flowing with milk and honey. The
speaker very appropriately said the
colored people were not unmindful
OF the great party, which under Lin
coin and Grant was the instrument,
under God, for their observation-disclosures
and present political position and
he exhorted all to cling to the party
that had fought the great battle tor
them and gained for humanity such
q signal victory. Judge Weisal, the
last republican nominee for Congress
from this District, followed inan adj
dress, made doubly impressive as
coming from one, venerable on ac-
count of years, and distinguished by
his position as one of the first law
yers OF our Commonwealth. Then
came Col. E. f. Anderson, whose
record is one of scars; and then,
strange to say, Miss Ellen Watson
Harper, a colored lady, was intro
duced, who enchanted the vast audi
ence with more than magic eloquence,
and gave to the world the first ex-
ample of female colored orator.
Among all the exercises of the day,
the speech of Miss Harper seemed TO
be the browning glory. Democracy,
as usual in the South, stuck up its
red nose at such an audacious move
on the part of the colored people, in
thrusting lady speaker before such
an assemblage but Maryland repub-
licans justify the move, and so it will