The age-herald., 1898-08-31
BURIED WITH
 MILITARY HONORS
The Remains of Phillip N. Finch
 Laid to Rest.
EXPERIMENT AT OAK HILL
Hundreds Turned Out to Pay a Last Tribute to the Dead Soldier Impressive Ceremonies at
 Home and Grave.

Yesterday Birmingham paid her last tribute to Phillip Medley Finch, the dead soldier of the First Alabama volunteers, who passed away at Jacksonville, Fla, Sunday afternoon after an illness of two weeks from typhoid fever.
 There were several hundred people men. women and children, old and young, at the depot when the remains arrived at 11:s5 o'clock on the Louisville and Nashville train from the south.
 Besides the hundreds of citizens who had assembled, every soldier of the First regi- ment who was in the city on furlough was there, both officers and men. Mrs. Julia N. Finch, the mother of the deceased, ac-- companied the remains from Jacksonville, where she had been with her son during the last five six days of his illness.
 Also accompanying the remains was a guard of honor from the Jefferson volun- teers. of which company the deceased was a member, under the command of First Lieutenant R. B. Going. The others com- posing the guard were Sergeant Luman s. Handley, Sergeant Dick Brown, Corporal Jim Johns, Corporal Fred Brown. Corporal Emmett Benton, Private Frank King, Ser geant Cary Thompson, Private Wallace
  The first six mentioned were the pall-bear- CTS.
 The remains were taken immediately to the family residence on Nineteenth street.
 The Ceremony at the House
 At 3 o'clock in the afternoon, the hour set for the funeral ceremony, the house and the street surrounding were filled with the friends of the deceased and of his family. There were many mothers and sisters there who had brave sons and brothers in the First Alabama and their silent tears spoke more eloquently than words the sympathy they felt for the bereaved mother and fam fly.
 The remains were dressed in the ser- geant's uniform of the United States army. It was hard to recognize in the worn, ema- ciated face which lay in the coffin, the handsome features of the boy who left Bir-- mingham just four months ago-the feat ures by which he will be remembered by his friends. but disease had done it's work well.
 Sergeant Finch was sick about one month. He had been indisposed for several days before the regiment left Miami and was taken sick on the train as the regiment was going to Jacksonville. He did not go to the hosiptal. for several days. rne uoc- tors say that he might have pulled through but toward the last his heart became too weak to stand the strain, and he died soon afterwards The surgeons called it the Cigarette heart" caused by too much smoking. Here it may be said that of the four deaths that have occurred in the First Alabama, Finch's was the second from disease. The other two were violent deaths.
 pr. G. B. Kelly of the First Methodist church. and pr. L. S. Handley, of the Gen. tral Presbyterian church, conducted the ceremonies at the conclusion of which a. ouartette composed of Messrs. Jim Johns,. Lorenzo Luckie, Ollie Miles and Luman, Handley sang a simple hymn most impress sively.
 The procession then moved out to Oak, Hill cemetery. As an escort, two conn panies of soldiers followed the remains to the grave, one being Troop D, Alabama Ma tional Guard, and the other special coih- pany of infantry, gotten up in Birmingham from among the various soldiers who are in the city on furlough.
 With Military Honors
 At the grave the remains were laid to rest with the usual military ceremony. The guard of honor, each man in turh' took part in throwing in the dirt. Not only the guard, but Colonel Higdon Major Smith and other officers of the First who were in Birmingham paid this last tribute to their departed comrade.
 This military ceremony finished thes grave was literally covered with floral offerings, conspicuous among which was a. ,..,.o ,o.+ar aC the comDany name for the Jefferson Volunteers. It was decorated with the company colors. blue and oldt gold.
 The special company under the command of Sergeant Dozier then fired the usual sa- lute of three volleys over the grave, after which thru bugles sounded the plaintivea notes of "taps" This ceremony brought to a close the funeral rites over the remains of Sergeant Finch, the noble-hearteo'