The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1894-08-17

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d. ]. MoHugh, Everett.
John Gray, Lewiston. sf
p. O'Malley. Portland. a
James Burnie, BiddefOId.
| Laurentius LaLe, New Gloucester.
In the absence of President Goddard of
Brockton, Mass, Vice President George W.
Debeck of Westbrook, presided. The follow
| ing officers were elected:
President-G. ". Debeck, Cumberland
Mills.
Vice President-C Emerson. Jamaica
| Secretary and reasu1er-Lieutenant H.
| L. Rice. Gray.
| Captain j. j. Emerson, A. NJ Elmes, G. F.
| Ward. Lieutenant H. F. Rice.
| 1t was voted to hold the next reunion in
| 1895 at Long Island.
| kilograms were received from President
| L. A. Albee, Machias; George B. Goddard
| Brockton; and Matt. t. Kippax, Columbia
| Arsenal, Tennessee.
| Suitable replies were sent to all these
messages.
| 1t was reported that all bills are paid and
| there is a comfortable balance in the
| treasury.
| Lieut. H. L. Rice Of Gray, will be glad to
| hear from any member of the old 18th
| United States Infantry, who has not so far
| revealed his present location.
| Letters of regret were read from Gov.
| Cleaves, now at the muster at Augusta and
| Captain Rogers of the Second Artillery, at
| Fort Preble.
| Of course the members Of the 18th Regi-
ment are scattered all over the country, be-
cause they were recruited all over the
/ country, and not in one locality. as is the
| case with a volunteer regiment. Since the
| formation of this association every effort
| has been made by the members, especially
| by Secretary H. f. Rice of Gray, to dis
cover the whereabout of all living men who
| have been members of this regiment. Out of
over 5000 regular United States soldiers
who have marched in the nth, only about
| $50 have been located by this association, so
| many of them are dead and the living are
go scattered. Of these $50 a little less than
| half are members of the association.
Yesterday there were two new members,
who were present at a reunion for the first
time. One was Sergt A. e. Clifford of Co.
| B., nth United States Infantry. who was
i retired from active service July 18th last,
| who has been in the regiment twenty-eight
| years, and who was recently located at Fort
Yates, Dakota and Fort Russell, Wyoming.
| Sergt. Clifford is now located in Lewiston.
The other new member was G. 81. Miles of
Lisbon. Me-. an ex-deputy sheriff.
Professor Charles Grimmer of this city,
| who was present, was for six years chief
| musician of this regiment and was general
! favorite with the men.
When the regiment first went into the
| field, the ladies of Portland presented them
handsome colors. During the entire war
this flag was carried through twelve great
battles. President Debeck, at one time
color sergeant, has star from the old flag,
| which was shown at the reunion yesterday.
After the business meeting dinner was
served in the small dining room. The wives
| of Sergt. S. S. Sturgeon. Elijah L. Green of
| Rockland, Charles Rice of Walpole. Mass,
and F. O'Malley of Portland, sat down to
the table with the gentlement. Chaplain F.
A. Gowen invoked divine blessing. An
enjoyable repast, was enlivened with merry
| "reminiscences of the old days at Fort
Preble.
| Sergt. S. S. Sturgeon of Boston. was ap-
! pointed chairman, and responded with a
| very appropriate speech. He thought that
such reunions were the most pleasant occa-
sions of any army mans life. 1t recalls
associations that stir the deepest feelings.
| At the beginning of the war peaceful men
| of all vocations were called to the fight, and
| in the twinkling of an eye, almost, became
| the best soldiers that ever shouldeTed
| musket. Their great service was because
| they were the most intelligent soldiers that
the world ever knew, and when the war.was
over these soldiers went back into peaceful
industrial life again without a ripple. Such
| a thing was never known before in the
| history of the world.
Chaplain f. A. Gowan was called upon
and spoke of the star from the old battle
flag, made by the Portland ladies and pre-.
sented to the regiment. He read a news
paper editorial referring to Memorial day
exercises in which he showed that star te
the school children and explained its signif
| canoe. He spoke further and eloquently OF
the peculiar excellency of OH flag in that
it does not represent the conqueror to any
oppressed people, as do the other great flag.
of the world.
He went on to say that the Democratic
party's recent incompetency is due to the
same cause that resulted in the victory o.
the North in the great war. "The Demo