The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1885-09-04

secnss and Incidents q RIverside-Ths
Aged Go 90 Take One Last Look. the
Young 20 Gather Inspiration fcr LIVES os
Loyalty and Devotion 90 Their Conntry.
NEW York. August 2l.-Thc men who
fought under General Grant aud tho
women who loved him because Of these
men have been pillng norallmementocs Of
affection on his tomb for days past.
| Yesterday most Of the flowers were
withered, except here and there fresh
emblem Of love. but the hlllsides Of
Claremont all day rc-echoed with the
tread OF those who had come to see his
tomb. The guards pushed the dead
flowers aside and placed the bright, fresh
ones on the tomb.
II one could have stood all day at One
Hundred and Twenty-niih street, strange
scenes would have been witnessed. An
old man got OF car. for instance, and
was trudging up the hill, when an old
womsn went across his path. The
man wore the badge 81 Grand Army
veteran; the woman faded dress aud
q worn bonnet OF demure pattern The
veteran, as was said, was old, and this
was no doubt the reason Of his III temper
when he said: "What do women want
here? Why are you in my path?
fought under him and want 10 see how
they buried him" The old lady moved
aside and said: "Go on, you should 90
first. never saw him when he was
alive, but had husband like you and
q son, bigger and stronger, aud they died
with him"
The old lady stood very still and the
rain fell on her and the veteran. but the
old man had some Of the spirit OF the
war days In him, and, taking her by the
arm, he led her up the bill, and when the
stretch OF green sward and the tomb
came in view he said; "You 90 nrst-you
have better right than nave" There
was another woman who came up
the hill when the rain was
led q child BY the hand. The child
carried 4 bunch OF flowers The woman
brought him 10 the barred gate OF the
tomb and said: Throw them In there,
my boy; he's the great General your
father used TO tell you OF just before he
died" All day long such men and such
women aud children visited General
Grants tomb. They didn't mind the
rain, but stood looking at the barred
doors In silent awe
Many people came up from the river
banks through the tangled ereenery, aud
one, the most conspicuous, was an old
man. lie had 4 short stout piece OF
wood Ia his nand. AT the tomb he took
out iack-knife and whitfield piece OF
carefully and threw 1t on the grave
what does that mean?' some one
asked.
This" the stranger answered; ssthat
don't believe In putting flowers on 4
soldiers or q Sailors grave. Cannon
and flags are all believe n, aud things
like that. That chip is just snip %
the old Cumberland before she went
down, when the Merrimac ripped us.
was on her, and know II were lying
there would rather have a ht Of the
old Cumberland than all the flowers this
side OF Jericho"
The dicnined United States soldier
who marched before the door to the tonb
all day long. was asked in the cvenin.
what he thought OF the people he had
seen al day. s.It reminds me-" be said,
'.of twenty years ago, when came home
from the war a youngsier, and saw al
the faces OF the people on Broad
way who cheered Us, and in the
same cheer cried for the Others
we had left behind. left the ranks
then, and only joined . short time ago.
but when I see these people looking
through the grating, can not but think
Of how the men and the women used to
look in orr old ranks-they were bully
ranks, too--when we were coming home,
hoping that the reports had lied and that
Jim or Bob, or some one else, would be
seen Just as ne went away"