The daily morning journal and courier., 1896-10-19

sailors who served i'm the Union Arny and Navy during the war between the st@tes' NO man is eligible to member- snip who has not received an honora- o,e ulscharge from the service. The opJecls or the association are to pre- serve traternal relations, to protect comrades in sickness, old age or mis- lortune; to care for widows and or- phans Of soldiers and sailors; also to promote loyal allegiance to the United States veterans by every moral social ana political means within the control or the organization, but this has been stricken out as too partisan. The first post was formed in Illinois by Dr R F. Stephenson (now deceased) in 1Sse Through his exertions posts were formed in other states, and a short time afterward called the encampment and yet so styled, was formed, with representatives from ten states and the District of Columbia. From this bginning the organization grew so rapidly that posts and depart ments multiplied until now every state and territory has it's quota. The different commanders in chief to the present time have been as follows.
 R. F. Stephenson, provisional S. l.. Hurlbert of Rockport, Ill, 1867.
 John A. Logan of Chicago, H., 1868, | 1S69 and 1870.
 A. E. Burnside of Providence, R. T., 1871 and 1872
 Charles Devens of Boston, Mass, 1873 and 1874.
 J. F. Hartranft of Philadelphia, Pa., 1875 and 1876.
 J. c. Robinson of Binghamton, N. r., 1877 and 1S7S
 1870
 Louis Wagner of Philadelphia, Pa., 1880.
 George s. Merrill of Lawrence, Mass, 1SS1
 Paul vandervort of Omaha, Neb., 1882
 Robert B. Beath of Philadelphia, 1883.
 John s. Kountz of Toledo, Ohio, 1884.
 Samuel B. Burdet of Washington, D. C., 1885.
 Lucius Fairchild of Madison, Wis, 1SS6
 John P. Req of Minnesota, 1887.
 William Warner, 1888. The second national encampment, which met in Philadelphia in 1868, elected General John A. Logan of Illi- nois commander in chief, and he gave the greatest impetus to the movement [ it had yet received. He served three terms and kept up the boom. It was during his administration that the beautiful and now popular services of T0r II Il-l-z T .tz.- M morial day, which had at first excited criticism as tending to revere and per- petuate sectional aniinosities. But this feeling has passed away and now the blue and gray have in reality clasped hands and vie with each other in the beautiful tribute of annually scattering natures choicest offerings to the nlem- ory of departed comrades.
 To Joseph A. Mower Post of New Or leans, La, is due the honor of having been the first of the Grand Army posts to set an example and to decorate the monuments, tombs and graves of the heroes of the lost cause, and this at a time when there was a. strong feeling against the propriety of such action. However, the individual members of that post knew their duty and were willing to accept the results, whatever turn they might take. The deep-s seat ed feeling that political and sectional matters have entered into the organi- zation has been overcome, and now the bronze star of the order is looked upon as the badge of the veterans bound by l silken cords, whose strands are fra l ternity, charity and loyalty" l Since the organization of the Grand Army of the Republic there has never l been a period of so much enthusiasm with relation to it, and the disposition to form posts and to extend it's mem- bership has never been so strong as it is to-day. And thus it will go on growing until all the survivors of the l 1,000,516 soldiers and the 8,250 sailors who were mustered out at the close of the war, are taken into it's embrace. It will soon be, and is fast coming to it al- ready, that every man who is eligible of all the hosts mustered out at the close of the war will yet become members of the Grand Army of the Republic. The bestowal of the badge upon the com- rades of the Grand Army of the Repub- lie is in itself a very simple matter. The whole affair may seem trivial, yet IL HlVolVeS d SIedl pIlllciplc IIe uH- obtrusive and friendless are likely to be forgotten, but in our gallant organiza- tion every comrade stands upon the same platform; the general can only be the equal of the private; all distinction of rank is merged into that of comrade- ship; the humblest soldier or sailor who had received his full share of the hard knocks of service now shares all the honors and rewards.-Captain Wright | in the New Orleans Picayune.