The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1899-10-20


the storm swept coast; "rhe Tartar lie
sighted" shrieked the delirious siren
whistles, and the bells proclaimed
their JOY in wide. mouthed acclama.
tions; "phe Tartar is sighted" quiv-
cred over the telephone wires to anX-
ious relatives and friends, who had
been waiting for days the home-cOm
ing of the gallant Regiment. And
many mother aud sister whose
sleep had been haunted by numerous
fears, rested in peace that night,
with the blessed assurance that the
transport had at last reached port
after stormy seas, and was safely en-
closed within the Golden Gate
1t is very hard to "only stand and
wait" Saturday mornings paper
reported the Tartar due Saturday or
Sunday. Those of us who had moth
ing but newspapers to rely upon-and
we found them in the long run more
accurately informed than some Off
cials-determined to call on the
Governors party at the Occidental
hotel aud find out when the transport
was expected and what arrangements
had been made for the reception of
the Kansas boys. Our sunflower
badges were a sufficient Introduce on,
and secured for us warm welcome
While we were waiting for Governor
Stanley, the soldiers of the party en-
tertained US with an. amusing des-
cription of the Wholesale manufacture
of sunflowers by the members of the
committee on their way across the
plains. The seed Mrs. III NJ. Miller
sowed in lola in few short weeks
bore crop of nearly thousand
flowers. lola made sunfluwers for
Co. |, and Kansas City for Co. b,
(from an lola pattern) The members
of the Governors party saw one of
the Kansas City badges. and decided
that every boy in the regiment ought
to have one. So they set to work on
the train and even pressed gentlemen
into servicewho were uuableat first to
even thread needle. But their skill
soon equaled their zeal, and five hun
bred sunfloWers were completed be-
fore the party reached san Francisco
Our first inquiry, when Governor
Stanley was at liberty, was with re-
gard to the probable time of the ar
rival of the transport. The Governor
thAnnht no in lima . mi c
month. Gen. Shafter and the War
Department at Washington were
quoted rs authority for THE state
ment. Then we asked if we would bs
allowed on board the tug furnished to
the reception committee by the har-
Dor commissioners. Every mother,
brother and sister of a Kansas boy
shall go out to meet the Tartar If 1
have to stay behind, myself" was
the answer. "At my request the
local executive committee have con-
scented to remain behind If there is
not room for all. The mothers and
sisters shall come first" There were
tears in more than one mothers eyes
as they thanked him and they're all
coming back to Kansas to vote for
Governor Stanley.
1t was hard to think of anything
else when we knew that the signal
might blow at any moment. But we
did our best to possess. our souls in
patience, and went into the city Mon
day to help welcome the Washing
tonians, in order to get our hand in,
1t was fortunate that we did so, for
the mothers got all their weeping
over with there. There was a siren
whistle that walled a discordant
''H0me sweet Home" as the men
were forming in line at the dock; it
was comlcal and at the same time SO
pathetic, that one hardly knew
whether to laugh or cry. | think the
mothers all cried, though; and when
the band played Home Again, Home
Again, From a Foreign Shore" Pm
afraid even the siS'srs were wet.eyed
and tremulOus.
But the Joyous signal came at last,
Tuesday night, and bright and early
Wednesday morning we were over at
the dock of the Governor Markham
the tug boat of the harbor commits
sion which was to take US out to tht
Tartar "When is she going out?'
was the impatient inquiry of n mum
her of the lola delegation. The per
son addressed, who happened to be
the captain of another tug responded
shortly: "Ten O'Clock, my boat, only
the Governors party goes on the
Governor Markham" "We're the
Governors party" was the naughty
answer. We had only forty minutes
to wait, but it seemed a long, Ions
time; for we were so excited WI