Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1886-06-01
DECORATION DAY.
Memorial Exercises lesterdaY-1ne II
notwithstanding Graves.

Memorial Exercises YesterdaY-1he Pro-
notwithstanding Graves.
Yesterday, throughout the United States
the graves of those who fell in the battles
OF the rebellion, and those who died SINCE
who took part in that memorable struggle
were visited in every part of the Union
and decorated with flowers. AT an early
hour yesterday morning men, women ana
| children wendell their way to the grave
yards of this city. the abode of the silent
dead, and the little mounds rising ABOVE
| the remains of loved ones were buried deep
with q wreath of flowers, of which, at tins
season of the year, Sacramento hath such
an abundance. The decorations were so
numerous, so appropriate, so expressive OF
love and affection, that it awakened
| in the minds of all thoughts OF the
many tender ties that had been
severed, of the hearts that mad
been made sad, of the homes that had been
made desolate and lonely, when the silver
cord had been broken, and the loved one
whose remains were now honored and re-
vered crossed the Silent River and entered
that unknown land from whose bourne no
, traveller returns The decorations were not
confined to a few graves, but appeared to
be very general throughout the cemetery.
The graves of soldiers were easily dlStn-
guished from the others, from the fact that
each was marked with small flag, the
banner of the Union under which they
fought, that their country might be pre-
served.
THE PROCESSION.
At A. NJ. the procession formed on X,
Ninth and Tenth streets, and marched
down X to Second, to ], to Tenth, to the
City Cemetery, in the following order
Uniformed police; First Artillery band;
First Artillery Regiment, Colonel Sheehan
manGing-Companies A, b, and
General Carey and staff in carriages; g. A.
R.-Sumner, Warren and Fair Oaks Posts
ladies of Sumner and Fair Oaks Relief
Corps, in carriages city officials, in car
riages, and long line of vehicles.
On arriving at the cemetery The process
sion repaired to the G.. A. r. lot on the
eastern slope, where the ritual ceremonies
were read by the officers of Sumner and
Warren Posts. Prayer was offered by
Rev. E. L. Ollie, and the band played as a
finale, Nearer, Ny God, to Thee" after
which the multitude scattered throughout
Gods Acre" and the decorating of graves
was tended to. The floral pieces placed in
the G. A r. lot were those which were ex-
nlDlIeu III lDe evening, anu
large number of others of beautiful and
appropriate designs the work of the ladies
of Fair Oaks and Sumner Relief Corps
Each grave in the plot was decorated with
flowers by the same fair hands, who also ded-
icated floral mounds to General Grant,
General J. f. Miller, the martyred Presi-
dent Lincoln, and the unknown dead. The
ladies of Sumner Corps also decorated the
grave of their late sister, Mrs. Isaac Moore,
covering it with flowers, placing thereon a
silken banner and large Maltese cross of
flowers, in which was deiicately woven the
words REST, Mary"
The services over, the procession re-
formed and returned at 1870 P. NJ Services
were held by the various Posts and Corps
on their return to their halls.
General McComb, Warden of the Folsom
State Prison, furnished large lot of beau
tiful flowers from the Prison grounds.
There seems to be some kind of ''hitch"
between Sumner and Warren Corps ON one
side and Fair Oaks on the other. Just
what it is outsiders are unable to find out.
but it was easy for the latter to observe
that during the services at the cemetery
Fair Oaks was utterly and entirely ignored
by the other two corps. The commands
were given by Colonel Kellogg on the CON
secrated ground" in the following style:
" The officers OF the tlcO corps will please
assemble, ETC." Just what is the difference
between the ex-soldiers no one cares, but
such an exhibition of feeling at such
place, and upon such an occasion, would
seem to be entirely out of place, and not in
keeping with the lesson sought to be taught.
Among the graves decorated with the
American colors, was one near the north
eastern corner of the cemetery, which at
tracted no little attention. The lot is ne
elected one, inasmuch as it is not bricked
up, sown to grass or covered with growing
plants. The grave is marked simply with
plain dark granite slab, the back and
sides rough. the face polished, upon which
is chiseled in plain letters, all of one size,
the following: "Col. VIM. S. Hamilton,
son of General Alex. Hamilton. Was born
N. Y. Aug. 4th, 1897. He was an early set
Ter of Wisconsin, coming to California in
1919. He died here Oct, 9th, 1850. In size
and features he much resembled his illus
trious father A friend erected this stone.n
No accident of any kind happened during
the day, and there was no interference of
the street-car travel, the management of the
procession avoiding the formation of block
AIDES. Altogether the management was
decided success, and reflected much credit
upon those who participated.