Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1889-08-02
LOCAL.
RAINY DAY READING.
A SUMMER OF TWENTY-EIGHT YEARS
AGO.


time, and we spent a couple of hours of it
porting over the old Newspaper files in the
county clerk S office. which told about the
beginning of the hostilities of the civil war.
One cannot read the utteranceS of that day
without receiving the impression that the
editors believed they werein mere political
fight and not just on the threshold Of one
which would prove full Of bloody events.
Commencing at March we read up to the
middle of July. Life was going on as usual.
The Musical ssociatiOn-Turner' S Cor
net Band, Orchestra and Glee Club" was
giving concerts, though its members would
in a few weeks be furnishing music Oh far
different fields. The merchants We're filling
the papers with seductive advertisements
of goods, though in less than month many
of them would have left their counters and
be engaged i'll a far different business. Vir-
ginia had not yet seeded and the two sides
supported by their two newspapers were
struggling, one to keep her in the Union
and the other to get her out.
PEACEFUL PURSUITS.
All character of business was represent
ted in the advertising columns and we find
the following acknowledgement Female
Seminary, John B. Tinsley, Principal,
Male School, Rev. Geo. b. Taylor, A. NJ,
Principal; Drugs-P. II. Trout; Tobacco
W. II. Waddell, Jno. b. Evans, J. II. d.
Johnson and G. T. Cochran; Guns-Henry
Hyer; Watches-G. g. Y eakle and A.
Lang; Northumberland IIirsh; Iron
Foundry-A. J. CARRIER; Copper and Sheet
Iron-J. G. Grove Il Bro. Clothing-J. w.
Ably and J. A. Armentrout Hardware
Geo. E. Price and Woods IL NTilkerson:
Glass and Chinaware-L. B. Waller; Dry
Goods-D. A. Kayser and Meredith, Spen-
cer q Co.; Plows-NIosby, Taylor & Fultz;
Books-R. Cowm; Photograph Gallery-il.
j. Rankin; Provisions-Jas. w. Craw-
ford; Undertaker-A. B. Chandler:
Muslc-Joe1 Ettinger, q teacher of it, and
G. L. Frey and j. Robinson dealers in
sheet music; Confectionery-Mag S.
Cease. At that time Richmond had a
larger share of the Staunton trade there
being no railroad connection with Balti-
more yet, and the papers had columns of
advertisements from Richmond merchants,
The hotel advertised was the Virginia, kept
by W. II. & L. L. Peyton.
THE FIRST GLIMPSE OF THE MUsKET.
The first zeal glimpse of what was to
come after, was meeting of the officers of
the various military companies in the town
and county to form aregiment. At that time
| oc oo1c
that regiments would be composed of neigh
boring companies Here as everywhere
else the hope was disappointed. The COM
panles represented at that meeting in the
little Hastings Court Clerk s office in the
Court House, were the West Augusta
Guard, Augusta Rifles, Staunton Artillery.
Mountain Guard, Churchville Cavalry.
Southern Guard, Union Greys and West
View Infantry, representing total of 400
men. The officers elected were Capt. w.
IL. S. Baylor, Colonel; Capt. r. L. Doyle, 1t.
Colonel; Lit. Fl. King Cochran, LIST Major,
and 1t. r. r. Ruff, I'd Major. But the
regiment as thus organized was nevermus-
tered in by the Confederate authorities.
THE CHURCH DIVISION
In that same month of March something
else was going ON equally ominous. The
Baltimore M. E. Conference was holding
its last meeting in the Methodist Church
on Lewis street, While it's laymen were
holding their convention at the Baptist
church. 1t was about to divide and the
debates added to the general excitement in
bp
ton from the General Conference was
adopted by vote of 81 to 80. At that meet
ing Rev. Jos. r. Wheeler was appointed to
Stalnton Station.
POLITICS.
Politics We're still going on. Hon. John
L. Harris, who was Il candidate for re-elec-
ton to congress, addressed the people of the
county on that March cOurt-day. Speakers
were filling appointments in the county to
address the people ION the issues of the
! day"
GROWING MORE IN EARNEST
| Along in April the State seeded and Au-
gusta was pouring out her troops as fast as
they could be uniformed. We see a card from
Capt. w. II. s. Baylor, the commander, and
Chas. S. Arnall, Secretary of the West Au-
gusta Guard, thanking the ladies for holding
fair Tor the benefit Of the company. One
paper says: The 'Ladies Soldiers Relief
Association is formed and several hum
dred ladies, Including the pupils at the fe-
male Seminaries, are making everything q
soldier can wear Some ladies are giving
their piano covers for blankets and those
who have "India rubber piano covers are
making waterproof blankets Of them for
soldiers
GOING TO THE FIELD.
Then came another election of officers for
a regiment, this resulting in the election of
w. II. s. Baylor, Colonel; Absolom Koiner,
Lt.-Col.; f. T. Sterrett, LIST Major, and
Rudolph Turk, I'd Major. But the Augusta
troops did not all get in any one regiment
The first troops that left. Of whom we see
any account, were the Staunton Artillery.
Capt. J. D. Imboden, and the West Augusta
Guard, Capt. w. II. S. Baylor. They left
on April 18th on the G. & O. road and a
great crowd gathered to see them off Adj
dresses were made on the sad occasion by
Rev. Geo. B. Taylor, Rev. G. g. Booker,
Captains Imboden and Baylor, and M. G.
Hartman. Orders for the Augusta troops
came fast, and ON the following Friday the
Mountain Guard, Capt. r. L. Doyle; Au-
guSta Greys, Capt. j. w. Newton, and
Southern Guard, Capt. Hazel Williams,
marched down the Valley pike to Mt jack
son where they were to take the railroad to
Harper Ferry. In Staunton the Southern
Guard was addressed by Rev. j. II. Craw-