Omaha daily bee., 1899-11-07

lea respected throughout the world. It
heat of the tropics and buried your com
rades-what for? To give Uncle Sam his
true true standing among, the nations; You You
OF the world. You tore down the Monroe
doctrine, which has hammered us for years.
You have placed the United States along
side, of that other great nation of the
earth, England, and | have taken an
oath to be grateful to England for what
a foot of ground without making 1t the
better. The language. the world under
mons mouth and it is necessary that a
few die to keep the wheels of nro"ress
IN notion If there is no grave on which
men. Join me In the hope and wish that
the G9d of Isaac and Jacob, of Cromwell
will guide and protect this republic of the
western world through all the centuries
Congressman McPhcrson.
Congressman Smith Mcpherson spoke in
part as follows:
Gentlemen of the Fifty-frst: The well
come of your governor and the others leaves
me nothing but to repeat and emphasize II.
you have travelled far. but, except when
you touched Japan; you have not once been
before you left in your schools ana The
common vocations of life, and that love
continued through your stay at San Fran
the other side of the Pacific and when It'd
lngs came of sickness or death knots of
people in tears gathered all over this state.
You have done well in the past and YOU
come home better prepared for citizenship
than than you We're before. Your, influence will
the nag as we never loved 1t before.
Welcome to Council BLUFFS.
Mayor Victor Jennings of Council Bluffs
welcomed the regiment on behalf of the city,
speaking in part as follows:
1t is pleasure and high privilege for me
TO give official assurance that Council
Bluffs extends to you a fervent welcome.
radn nG VS. our foI love pd the ad %
power of words. Our city is not alone in
receiving you. Our greeting, today is
state of Iowa, and this magnificent tribute
is the visible manifestation of a nations
grateful remembrance
At your country's call you brave boys
left the comforts of home, severed the ties
which bound you to. all most dear to en-
march. the dangers of battle and the hor-
patriotic shouts which cheered you on were
sweetheart. Well and faithfully, have you
to yourselves and honor to your, state and
nation, and we receive you and welcome
you to the best, state in the best country
has ever wrought. Nothing is too good for
you and nothing shall you want within
reach of the hands and hearts of our people.
Soldiers of the Fifty-first Iowa, our city
is yours. We have torn our gates from
their hinges; We make an unconditional
surrender. We return you to the comforts
of your homes, to the enjoyment of the
bountiful harvests of your native state to
the embraces and affections Of the mothers,
guiding star to all good deeds you have per-
formed.
Rev. George Edward Walk of st. Paul's
Episcopal church pronounced the benedic
ton.
Banquet to the Soldiers.
The banquet to the members of the regi-
ment was served in the Eseman building
where the two upper floors had been hand
somely decorated under the direction of
Alderman Casper. The former bare, white
walls had been transformed into a gay pic
ture of red, white and blue, while festoons
of green smilaX hung in graceful drapings
on all sides. The long tables with snowy
linen were literally decorated with flowers
and formed a pleasing and appetizing ap-
pearance. The dinner hot one, was served
in courses.
The soldiers went to the banquet room in
detachments, finding considerable difficulty
in getting away from their friends and rela-
tives even for sufficient time to eat. Each
soldier was presented with a handsome
boutonnere and cigar on leaving the hall
by the twenty-five matrons and 122 young
women acting as Mattresses. And last but
not least each soldier was given hearty
handshake on entering and leaving the
hall and made to feel that he was among
friends who were proud to have him their
guest.
Following the dinner, the members of the
different companies went to tho respective
headquarters assigned to them, where they
met and were greeted by the people from
their towns or either arm in arm with par
ents and other relatives walked the streets
until it was time to take the trains that
were to convey them to their respective
home towns
The members of the various uniformed
bands were served with dinner at the Ma
sonic temple and 900 musicians from all
parts of the state were served with a meal
which was counterpart of the one served
the soldiers.
The crowds thronged the streets all the
afternoon and late into the night. The bands
gathered in Bayliss park and rendered
number of tunes which attracted an audience
of several thousand. Pearl street from
Broadway to Fifth avenue seemed to catch
the greater part of the crowd and the street
at times was almost impossible, partcu-
larly when some band would stop in front
of the Grand hotel and play. The scene in
side the hotel. which was regimental head
quarters, was indeed lively one and here
the officers and their friends mostly gath
cred.
The crush was terrific in the early part of
the evening at the local railroad stations
while the out of town visitors by the thou
sands were waiting to board the special
trains that were to convey them home. At
the Burlington local depot on South Main
street the crowd was greatest and it wac
near 10 o'clock before the last special pulled
out loaded to the doors
Companies A and II left for Des Moines in
a special over the Rock Island at 130 in
the afternoon, the other companies following
at intervals, some on the Rock Island and
others on the Burlington.
Company l. Arrives.
1t was near to in the evening when the
belated third section, having on board the
companies from Council Bluffs, Red Oak,
Shenandoah and Glenwood, pulled into the
Rock Island local station Never was such a
scene enacted upon the arrival OF any train
in this city before. For hours the people
had been cougregating at the station and the
lop1 plo form, WAS nackad with n solid mass