Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1886-09-24

fare tndI WIS IltllC CNCu " ChJOyobAO
from the fact of its beingserved by charm
ing ladies, who favored the food by their
smiles, and many old soldiers heart was
made brighter by their kind attentions.
The amount of provisions disposed Of was
immense, but the good citizens of Wheeling
were generous and there was plenty and
to spare. The various stands and booths
around the grounds did a good business
among the vast throng Of visitors to the
Reunion.
As is usual on such occasions, the man
with the striking machine" the
chap with the base ball babies and the
''hying dutchman' were all present, with
many more of their ilk. Besides these
the man who runs the bird show was
there and delighted large audiences with
the wonderful performances of the bird.
les" There were people present from all
the surrounding towns in this vicinity,
representing all branches of trade and all
professions, while the farmer with his fam
lily was numerously represented. In tact
when the grand stand had been packed
and all had assembled to heal
the speeches, a fair estimate of the number
in attendance could not fall below 10000.
Every ten minutes during the afternoon
guns stationed on the grounds were fired
| which in addition to the music and patriot
ic shouts of the soldiers formed q scene thai
was indeed touching, and one that Will be
long remembered by those who participated
in it. During the interval between dinner
and the commencement of the afternoon
exercises the soldiers spent the time most
enioyably by meeting, singing songs, talk
ing over old war experiences and In many
WAYS tightening the already fast bonds OF
friendship and c~omradeship.
A speakers stand had been erected on
the race track extending from the judges
stand out close to the grand stand, so thai
auditors could hear very distinctly. AT :
o'clock the grand stand was comfortably
filled with an audience of men, women and
children, while the track around
the speakers stand for some distance
was a sea of upturned faces, the
soldiers generally crOwding up in front to
hear all that was said.
An organ had been placed upon the
speakers stand and it was manipulated
by Comrade Sheib with q cornet accom-
pnaiment by Mr.. Henry Vaas. The exer-
cises were opened by singing Amer
ica," the audience all joining in,
song books having been freely
distributed among those pres
ent. At the conclusion of the hymn
Capt. b. y. Dovener called upon Capt.
John Carlin to offer prayer. The Captain
came forward and requested the audience
to rise and uncover" which was done,
whereupon he made an eloquent appeal to
the Throne of Grace, saying, 20 God OF
eternal truth and grace, we come invoking
Thy Blessing and acknowledge Thee as
our BenefactOr and Creator. We thank
Thee for this land of freedom in which we
live, and for the blessings bestowed upon
us so lavishly, and we ask, o Lord, that
Thou help us to appreciate and take ad-
vantage of them to Thy glory. Bless all
comrades and their families, and intuse us
with the Divine Spirit so that we may
forever stand loyal and true to our coun-
try. Bless the exercises of this afternoon
and grant that they may be OF advantage
and profit to ALL
'HOld Hundred was sung, after which
Capt. DOvener introduced Mayor J. w.
Grubb, who said: Soldiers and fellow
citizens: We desire to extend to yOu a
hearty welcome back to old camp Carlisle,
from where so many of you started ont to
fight for our country many years ago. We
also extend you q hearty welcome to the
city"
General |. II. Duval introduced DR.. T.
II. Logan President Of the Chamber of
Commerce, who said: Soldiers of Ohio,
| PENNSYLVANIA, and West Virginia and all
soldiers of the Union; 1t affords me very
great pleasure, in behalf of the Chamber
of Commerce of Wheeling, to second the
remarks of His Honor, the Mayor, and eX-
tend to you u cordial and heartfelt well
come. And to these words of welcome,
we feel prompted to add our hearty con-
CALCULATIONS over the fact that so many OF
you have been spared to meet together III
this interesting Reunion, and to recount in
the presence of your wives and children
and friends, the thrilling incidents of your
eventlul soldering life.
We further congratulate you that you
have been spared to witness with your W
ewes the wonderful and splendid results
which have been achieved for our beloved
country by the labor and sacrifices rem
dered by yourselves and comrades.
We congratulate you that you have ex-
changed the weapons of war for the arts OF
peace; and that the one glorious flag OF
our beloved country is hOnOrcd, not only
by the allegiance, but by the sincere devo-
ton of both the blue and the gray.
In conclusion, permit me to emphasize
if possible, IL words of welcome, to ex-
tend our cordial greetings, and to wish you
long life in which to enjoy the blessings
You have earned for yourselves and your
children; and to receive the honOrS with
which Il grateful country is glad to crown
YOU"
Mai. r. II. Mckee, of the First West
Va. Infantry, responded to the addresses
of welcome in an eloquent speech of some
length, during which he said: 1T is our
chief JOY to be your guests on this occa-
sion. The soldiers of the late war are men
whom nations stand ready to honor in any
walk of life, and we feel it an honor to
partake of the hospitality of your city.
The war in which we fought was one of
principle, that principle being that all
men should have equal chances. We
now have but one Countrywide Union
but one Standardization and but one
hag-the stars and stripes. The character
of an American soldier is reflected by the
character of his country, and there is no
country on the face. of the globe so great
as ours" The speaker then closed with
a very brilliant p%erOratiOn, in mhich he
again thanked the city of Wheeling for
its hospitality. q
The Battle Cry of Freedom" was then
sung, after which Hon. A. w. Campbell
was introduced by Capt. Dovener, and as
with the previous speakers, he was re-
ceived with shouts of applause.
Mr.. Campbell referred to his appearance
before the audience as being similar to that
of a conscript-rather compelled to go to
the front by force of circumstances. He
referred to the time when Wheeling Island
was known as Camp Carlisle, and of the
brave men who had started out from there
to fight for their country. He thought
the Union army would have been defeated
had it not been for West Vir-
ginia's $4,000 soldiers. He then
branched off into a talk about
the prosperity of our country, and in
.onr1 about mo- r;y;nntha Donrhl;aon -,