The Portland daily press., 1876-05-31

| There Honor comes, pilgrim gray,
| To bless the turf thot wraps their clay,
And Freedom shall awhile repair,
| To dwell weeping hermit there.
Those who predicted few years since that
in half dozen years the observance of the day
known as Decoration Day would cease to have
any interest to the people generally, must have
concluded, yesterday, that they are poor
| prophets and have no real appreciation of the
| devotion of the men and women of to-day to
the men who fell in the late war, and the last
ing gratitude they have for the country's mar
| tyrs.
| Never in this city have the exercises of Dec
Grafton Day been so generally attended, the
services more impressive and tie floral offerings
| So rich and numerous
The day was perfect, cool, clear and bright,
while the rain of the night before had washed
the streets Of the dust and given a fresher
green to field and forest
The programme of the day was made up,
and, it may be added, perfected by the Com
| mittee of Arrangements Of Bosworth Post
| Every detail had been so carefully arranged
| that there was not the slightes disorder. From
| the despatching of the earliest detachment in
the morning to the close of the exercises in the
evening, everything was cared for SO thorough
ly in advance that the exercises passed of like
clock-work.
THE MORNING EXERCISES.
The comrades of Bosworth Post, G. A. B..
| gathered at their hall at an early hour. A de.
| tachment under command of w. E. st. John
IVA daioi1ad 70 in
City Cemetery. Prsyer was offered by Rev.
John Collins, after which the comrades deco
| rated IS graves A detachment was despatched
to Calvary Cemetery, the Montgomery Guards,
Capt. O'Donaghue, headed by Chandler's
Band, doing escort duty. Father Wallace
celebrated mass in the church adjoining the
| cemetery, after which 81 graves were decorated.
The detachment sent to Eastern Cemetery was
nnder command of W. 81. Sargent Rev. Mr..
Wright offered prayer, after which 81 graves
received decoration. The detachment detailed
for Western Cemetary were under command of
G. W. Bean. Rev. Mr.. Dole offered prayer
and 30 graves were decorated. Besides these
decorations large number of special decora-
tions were made in each cemetery.
AFTERNOON EXERCISES.
Ae WIG appoiu1ou uours INC proCssSiou was
formed in front of Grand Army Hall on Con-
gress street in the following order:
Platoon of Police-Capt Black.
Chambers Band-25 pieces.
Chief Marshal-E. f. Hanson.
Aids-Windsor B. Smith and James M. Stafford.
Pencil, Commanding Adjutant Adams, Acting
panies: Mechanic Blues, Lieut.. II. #.
Rich, 56 men; Montgomery Guards,
capt ODon0ghue, 59 men Light
| Infantry, Lieut. -, AZ men.
Battalion Of Marines and Sailors from the U. s.
steamers Monongahela and Ossipee, Lieut.. Wat
son, Of the Marine Corps, Commanding,
Lieut. ut:a Webster ns tel Acting Adjutant, COM
ed as follows:
First Company (Marines), Lieut.. Elliot; Second
Fourth, Master Tyler; Fifth, Master Mer-
ram-aggregate strength 200 men.
Portland Band-2f pieces
Bosworth Post Grand Army of Republic, Command
er W. H. Sargent 100 members in uniform.
The procession was the largest and most at
tractive which has ever turned out on such an
occasion in this city. The streets were filed
with people in holiday attire and and the STIR
ring music the soldierly appearance of the
military, the novel spectacle of so large force
from the navy evincing that dis ,ipline for
which that arm of the servive is conspicuous,
the soldierly bearing of the city organizations
of ex-soldiers, all conspired to make the pro-
cession one of the most noticeable and impos-
ing that has appeared on our streets for a long
time.
After marching over the route laid down in
the programme, the procession halted in front
of the City Building and received the members
| OF the city government and other invited
guests including Lieut.. Collins, U. S. n, G.
w. True, Esq, Surveyor of the port, ard L. B.
Smith, Esq, Deputy Collector. The process
sion then proceeded to the Portland & Roches-
ter depot, where cars were in waiting for the
part of the procession which was to proceed to
Evergreen Cemetery. Fifteen cars were
| crowded from the platform of the first car to
the rear of the last. Arriving at Morrilps
| Corner, the procession was reformed and
| marched to Memorial Lot in the cemetery
Hundreds of carriages were in the streets and
thousands of people, quiet and evde ntly i'm
pressed with the character of the services,
passed into that beautiful home of the dead
The comrades of Bosworth Post and the Army
and Navy Union were divided into attachments
which repaired to the graves of the dead in
the late war, each of which was marked by a
small flag, and deposited thereon a wreath,
many of which were very beautiful The
ladies of the Relief Corps also placed bouquets
on the graves of the members of that organi-
cation who have died. One hundred and sixty
| graves were decorated.
When the services Of decorating the graves
were completed those performing the service
assembled on Memorial Lot and the monu-
| ment dedicated to the "absent dead" which
was covered with evergreen, was decorated
| with wreaths and beautiful bouquets the COM
| rades performing the service advancing with
| uncovered heads The Portland Band then
| gave drge, Rev. Mr.. Johnston offered brief
| and fervent prayer, the band rendered Rock
| of Ages" and Rev. Mr.. Johnston closed the
| exercises with the benediction. The large con.
course of people then returned to their homes
EVENING EXERCISES.
City Hall was filled with an audience which
| appreciated the occasion-with few excep-
tions-the exceptions getting the most con
| spicuous seats and leaving them when the SER
vices were half concluded, Before the exer-
| cises began the Portland Band entertained the
audience with appropriate music. At eight
| O'Clock the Committee of Arrangements, officers
| of the Post, members of the city government
and others, escorted the orator. Major George
S. Merrill editor of the Lawrence. Americana to
the platform, when the following exercises fol-
| lowed:
Music by Portland Band.
Prayer by Rev. G. +. Dole.
Grafton by Maj. Geo. S. Merrill.
Singing of "America," by the audience
Benediction.
The audience evinced more than usual inter-
est in the exercises The Grafton of Major
| Merrill abounded in patriotic sentiment and
| paid eloquent and merited tribute to the ma