The Brookhaven leader. [volume] (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1883-1891, 1889-09-05
THE REUNION.
a GRAND TURN OUT OF
THE OLD VETERANS,
Eloquent Speeches. Fine Music
And a General Hand-Shak-
ing.

town from every direction to partici-
pate in the grand reunion which for
weeks past had been appointed for
that day. Such a crowd has not been
seen in town since the day of the
great Prohibition rally of August 9TH,
1886, and in numbers it far exceeded
that. Besides Lincolnites, there was
a goodly representation from Law
renee, Pike and COpiah, all come to-
gether for a common purpose and act
uated by a common sentiment.
At 10 o'clock all of the business
houses closed, and shortly after that
hour the old soldiers formed in a line
under the command of Capt. J. A.
HoSkins, Marshal of the day, and
Capts. l.. c. Maxwell and +. S. Cot
ton, and marched to the Fair Grounds
to marshal strains of music by the
Bogue Chitto and Brookhaven cornet
bands that revived in the breasts of
the old vets the marshal fire of other
days. There were fully 500 in line,
and register shows $50 present be-
longing to various commands.
On arrival at the Fair Grounds, the
regiment" drew up in line in front of
the grand stand, where hundreds of
ladies and children had already as
sembled, and after brushing about
an inch of dust, more or less, from
their hats and clothes, were ordered
to "break ranks
Immediately following this Judge
Hiram Cassidy was introduced by
Capt. Hoskins and delivered the well
come address. 1t was splendid and
appropriate effort, delivered in the
Judges best style, and as it was
short, we have the pleasure of laying
it before Our readers in its entirety. 1t
was as follows:
Twenty eight years ago our com
mon country, "The land of the free
and the home of the brave made so
by the heroic struggle of common
ancestry against the tyranny
of the mother country, was con-
vulSed in fratricidal strife; the
land of the immortal Washington,
who was "tirSt in war, first in peace,
and first in the hearts of his country
men, was made for four long and
bloody years the scene of a san
culinary struggle between the lineage
of the patriotic fathers. who founded
the Republic as an asylum for not
only their own PROSPERITY, bat for the
oppressed of all lands. The world
stood aghast at the magnitude Of the
struggle while the critics, familiar
with both ancient and modern war
fare, gave the need of superiority
for heroism and gallantry upon the
battle field, tenacity of purpose in a
cause deemed to be just and right, to
the descendants of il great and noble
ancestry; that out Of world of i'm
perialiSm, monarchy and tyranny
formed and established free repub-
lie, which for over Il hundred years
has resisted the assaults of foreign
enemies as well as domestic war. and
stands out to day in all its glory as
the greatest and grand"st civil fabric
that the brain OF statcaman ever
conceived or the strong arm of a pa
triOt warrior ever defended.
TO keep alive the memories of the
struggle, to garner and keep sacred
the deeds Of hcroism and valor of
both the Northern and Southern sol
der as the common heritage of the
Republic, is a sacred duty of not only
the surviving veterans of both armies,
but OF their PROSPERITY, to the end
that the Union established by the
fathers, lie re-baptized and made holy
in the blood of their children, may en-
dure and last forever.
In harmony with this idea the sur
vivOrs of the Confederate cause ofthis
county determined to call together at
this place and time the survivors of
each army in this and adjoining coun-
ties that in a renewal of the memo
ries of the past, the seed of fraternity
and union in common devotion to
our glorious Republic might be strewn
upon genial soil
Imbued as | feel assured the true
soldier Of each army is with the con-
victiOn that each fought the battles of
his section of the country for cause
which he deemed to be in support of
the rights of the citizen, liberty and
freedom, each feel safe in saving re-
spects the other for his patriotism and
devotion to the cause he espOused and
the manhood exhibited upon the
battle fields Of the Republic, in AN
effort to achieve victory.
While we hold i'll sacred memory
our own heroic dead and would and
do commend to our children their ex-
ample as worthy of emulation, and
will when we, the survivors of the
cause for which they gave their lives,
receive our summons to pass beyond
the river enjOin upon them to cherish
their and our memories, not as trait
Ors or rebels, but as patriots loyal to
to the Republic of our fathers; at the
same time we would invoke them to
remember the Northern soldier who
fought from conviction of duty; that
he too was patriot and all should be
embalmed in the memory of their
cOuntrymen; for we all know that
should the tOcsin of foreign invader
or assailer of American rights be
sounded, the "Blue" and the "Grey"
would rally as band of brothers to
the call of their country under the
flag of the Republic, and would in
common cause re-enact the deeds of