The Norfolk Virginian. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 186?-189?, 1896-07-01
BACK TO OLD VIRGINIA
Governor 0'FerraII Welcomes the Men Who
Fought and Bed Oh Her Soil.
PROMINENT Ex-CoNFEDERATsS SPEAK.
The Sixth Annual Reunion OF Con-
federate veterans Formally Re-
BEFORE in Her Klfstory-NOt Since
'6l.'C5 hns She Held Sueh n ThronE

Richmond, Va. June S0.-(SpeciaD--
Nearly all the seats in the great Aud.to-
rum building werc occupied to-day at
1880 O'Clock w.ten General John 3. Cor
don, Comma N nder-in-Ch.ef of the United
Confederate Veterans, called the gather
ing TO order. a most hearty greeting
was given General Gordon. Before he
could utter n woHl the band struck up
Dixie and 10000 people yelled them
selves hoarse. Chaplain General j. Will
liam Jones offered prayer. He made his
appeals to the God of Israel. the God OF
Lee. the Gcd of Jackson and the God OF
Davis
Directly after the prayer Governor
O'Ferrall was intiDduced TO deliver an
address Of welcome He had just begun
when a shout at the door announced the
approach of Wade Hampton. He came
down the center aisle leaning on the arm
OF a strong veteran Hampton has aged
rapidly in the last year or two and he
llmped when he walked. The cheers
That greeted him when he walked upon
the platform we:N deafening. His re
ception was q most decided ovation.
o
Goveror O'F'errall was given most
attentive hearing. His address was a
little long. but ii caught rae crowd and
he was applauded time and again He
spoke as follows:
The Governor began by giving a cor.
dial greeting TO his old comrades He
spoke of the struggle begun in t1!s coun-
try more than a generation ago. a struG-
gle of eleven States of the Union to free
themselves of the bonds shat held them
TO the remaining twonty-one States and
nine Territories. y struggle of five and
a half millions of psople against twenty
one and q half millions. On the side OF
nhe South was H land with
out a navy, n treasury on the
munitions of war, and with an army of
100000. On the side of the North was q
land with powerful navy. full treas
ury, all TIE necessities of war recruits
from every cline drawn by heavy boun.
ties and an army Of 100000.
In the open field withOu: helmet or
breaStplate. r!x CCnfederates engaged in
mortal combat twer:y-seven Federals.
In Verifcat.0n of this statement the Gov
ernor SAID that on June 80 1898 The
names of l.l25.00O living Federal soldiers
of the war We're recorded in the War De
partment. OF which 970.524 were drawing
pensions amounting ito nearly Sl40. .O00 900
a year. AS to the roll of living Confed-
crates no man could tell the exact mum.
Der, but from bes; Information /; was
estimated that only 225.000 were now
alive. And the Governor added:
80, then. assuming that ,sha 'remorse-
less archer" has aimed his shat: with inn
Partially. the ratio of about five 10 one
still living Indicates what 1t was in the
lurid glare of battle.
With such disparity" he went on. "it
IS no wonder that children OF the South
can hardly realize that the flag of the
Confederacy was kept noating fo! four
years. They cannot understand how
skill. dash and daring made up for over.
whelmlnE numbers. and devotion and
self-sacriiice were abls able to utilize the
advantages Of limitlcsa resources The
Governor then spoke OF the wonderful
achievements of the Southern armies
which no; only defended their own land
but three times invaded the enemies ter
r!tory and thundered q the gates of the
Federal capital.
He called over the numerous battles
in which the South wa: victorious. and.
then addressing the old soldiers. said:
veterans and comrades you were en-
Nted in these bands who wrote their
names in gloly's skies and carved Them
deep in the temple of fame. who made
the cause of the South so imperishah,e
and the renOwn Of her armies so fadeless
You endured hardships which no human
imagination could picture and no marital
tongue could dcscribc. Your eXploits
equalcd those of the heroic age i'm Gre
cian legends and your devotion was not
surpassed by Leondas and his Ehree
hundred at Thermopyae In the nath
OF dnty no danger daunted YOU. no suf-
lernS subducd you, no force appalled,
you, and no defeat: disheartcned YOU.
true AIS the dial 10 the sun. firm as the
rock on the mountain crest. rcsolute
as Inc lion aroused in his lair with
uhDlanched cheek and steady nerve YOU
opeyed every command however rained
the missiles of death. The greater the
peril Inc stiffcr were your Sinews; the
mercer the battle the hotter was your
pioou. NO GreCian phalanx. no Roman
region We're ever adorned with badges
more honorable than those Sou wear
upon your manly breasts IL was
heliher conquest nor power for which
you Fought: ii was In defence of home
ana country. The rights for which the
founders or this republic struck were no
more sacred TO them than the rights
iof winch you struck were dear TO Won
III you were rebels so were The fathers
OF constitutional liberty of n hundred
uhu twenty years ago. II you fought to
sever your connection with q Union
whose bonds were calling. so did the
men now immortalized in song and
story when they snapped the cord of
BRITISH allegiance in 1776 If Won had
within you spirit that would NOT sub-
NIT tamely to wrong and dared 10 as
cert itself in the front of grim yisared
might, II came to you by ancestral in
heritance; or If foreign born you imbib-
ed ut from the air you breathed."