The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-12-15
FIRST DAY OF THE JUBILEE
WARM GREETING TO THE CHIEF EX-
ECUTIVE AND PARTY
Gen. "JOe" wheeler One of the Celeb
rifles of the Peace Festivities
Floral Parade and Receptions.

ATLANTA, Ga, Dec. 14.-President Nc
Kinley made memorable the first day of the
Atlanta peace jubilee by a notable utterance
in his speech before the joint session of the
Georgia Legislature this afternoon. His re-
ception by the General Assembly was warm
and hearty in the extreme, and his speech
was punctured with frequent outbursts of
cheering. 1t is admitted on all sides that
the address marked an epoch in history, and
is tonight on every lip.
UpoIsathe Presidents arrival at the Capitol
he was greeted with a field artillery salute,
and was at once escorted to Governor
Gamblers office There was short informal
reception there. Upon it's conclusion the
President, followed by members of the Cab
met, was conducted to the Assembly cham
ber, where he occupied the speakers chair
with Governor Gambler on his right When
President Dodson, of the Senate, called the
Legislature to order the galleries were
thronged with men and women. The body
Of the chamber was fairly well filled with
state senators and assemblymen, while the
uniforms of various officers and the Cow
ernor's staff gave touch of brilliant color
to the gathering. On the first row facing
the speaker sat Secretaries Gage, Long,
Wilson and Postmaster General Smith and
Secretary Porter. Besides the speakers
desk and below the President Generals
Wheeler, Lawton and Young, in full uni
form, sat on chairs The speaker raped
for silence and introduced the President to
the audience, after congratuating the State
of Georgia upon the presence of their dis
tinguished guest. AS the President rose the
audience applauded. During the course Of
his short speech Mr.. Mckinley referred
often to his notes. and constantly paused
for the cheers to stop. A scene of intense
enthusiasm followed when, amid impressive
silence. these words fell from the lips of the
President:
Every soldiers grave made during our
unfortunate civil war is a tribute to Amer
lean valor. And while, when those graves
were made we differed widely about the
future of the government, those differences
were long ago settled by the arbitrament
of arms-and the time has now come in the
evolution Of sentiment and feeling, under the
providence of God. when in the spirit of
fraternity we should share with you in the
cares of the graves of the Confederate sol
diers.''
A wild cheer went up from every throat in
the typical Southern audience. cheer that
echoed and re-echoed through the chamber
until it was taken up by the crowds out
side Old men who fought for the South
rose from their seats and waved their hats.
One Confederate veteran, now venerable
legislator, had pressed forward until he was
leaning against the speakers desk, hanging
on each word the President uttered. When
the reference was made to the Confederate
dead this old man buried his head in his
arms and while the cheers rang out, cried
like little child. OF all the many concilia-
tory speeches which have been made since
Grant said, Let there be peace" nothing
has more deeply stirred Southern audience
than the simple words of President Mckin-
ley this afternoon.
No sooner had President Mckinley con-
cluded before there were loud cries for
Wheeler, and when that little man got up,
his head scarcely higher than the speakers
desk the audience once more gave vent to
wild enthusiasm. General Wheeler referred
enthusiastically to the efforts of the President
towards preserving peace as long as the
country's honor would permit such efforts
and of his masterful policy after war was
inevitable General Wheeler paid tribute
to Admiral Dewey and added: ''The army
in conjunction with the navy was ordered
to attack and destroy the Spanish forces
at Santiago. In four weeks that order was
obeyed and its purposes accomplished. The
proud Spanish nation stood suing for peace
from the nation which month before 1t
had held up in ridicule and scorn."
Calls for Brigadier General Young brought
that officer to his feet with short speech
regarding the condition of the army camps
in the South He said that no troops in the
world were better, more regularly fed and
better treated than the troops in South
Carolina and Georgia General Lawton was
loudly cheered, but refused to make
speech. He simply thanked on behalf of his
men at Santiago the Legislature and people
OF Georgia for their tribute 20 himself Sec
retary Alger refused to speak, and the
Legislature dissolved.
The President held a private reception in
the Senate and afterwards a public recep-
tlon on the steps Of the rotunda. Then hun
dreds of Southerners crushed and jostled
each other in their anxiety TO shake a
Northern Presidents hand Many had come
from miles distant. and when at 2:l5 the
! President left the Capitol there were still
hundreds bitterly disappointed because they
had not been able 10 make their way
through the surging throng to get a Sec
ond's hold on his hand