The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1900-06-13
CONFEDERATE HAND-SHAKE
BILL ARP LIKES LOUISVILLE.

BILL ARP LIKES LOUISVILLE.
Ihe Experience of Every Veteran
Would Fill a Volume With Interes
The Great Address OF DIR. Palmer
1t would take q week OF time and q
whole regiment Of writer's to tell about
the great Confederate Veterans reun.
Ion at Louisville. Nothing like it has
been witnessed since the close OF the
civil war. 1t Dasseth comprehension
Inls is Thursday, the second day, and
there are now here twice as many vete
rams as ever gathered anywhere. For
many years we were not allowed &c
gather anywhere to jubilate, but now
we go where we please and say what we
please and voice our old Confederate
sentiments and sing Dixie" and un-
iurl our banners and even the boys in
blue join in the general hilarity. re.
member when General George Fl
Thomas was here in 1865, and | have
preserved letter from him in which
he said we Romans must not exhibit a
Confederate llag any more In public
nor even keep one in private, Tor it was
the emblem OF treason and the punish
ment OF treason WAS death Our Ro-
man yOung mon and maidens had used
an old tattered banner in tabieau ex-
hibitlon that was given in the city hall
to raise little money to put back some
pews In the city churches, for the Fed
erals had taken out the pews and used
them for horse trOughs and used the
churches Tor pcvender. That old war
stained banner was the one our boys of
the Eighth Georgia regiment marched
into the first battle Of Manassas with
under General Barlow, and our young
people thought it no harm to place it
In u dead soldiers hand In q tableau
scene Of field after the battle. Then
we were allowed to think what we
pleased, but row We can say what we
please and do what we please and
there's no treason in 1t. What a good
doctor old Father Time is. Why he
was Federal soldier who opened the
ball at Phenix hall last night and gave
q welcome to the veterans. Captain
| Plrtle was one OF the boys in blue, but
ne paid tribute to us and spoke kind
and loving words and would put us on
the pension rolls IL he could. He is a
great, big hearted gentleman, he ia.
There are III 900 veterans here now
-surc enough veterans who wore the
gray, and they are the livest men in a
dead cause the world ever saw. There
are twice as many here as were In Char
lesion last year. Captain Pir.ie said In
| "
yours" and 1t is. Such hospitality was
never witnessed anywhere. Just read
the papers and 1t will amaze you.
There are veterans here In business
who entertain every one who Is left OF
their old regiments. Here is Captain
Norton, who went out from Rome with
the Light Guards and has accumulated
fortune here since tn, war. He wrote
letter to every surviving member OF
the Eighth Georgia regiment, urging
them to como and to be his guests.
an proud to be one OF them, and Col
onel Towers is here, too, giving orders
from these headquarters. A year ago
we were lamenting the rapid passing
OF the Confederate veterans and we
really feared we would never more
gather enough OF them to make 1t in
teresting. But here they have doubled
In number and tribbled In life and It
can't be accounted for unless the States
have Increased their pensions. Money
helps to prolong life, no doubt OF 1t.
Georgia now gives half q million year
to her old soldiers and they just keep
living on and on.
Time cuts down all,
| Both great and small,
| Except pensoned soldier.
| They do not die,
But multiply
| AS last as they grow older.
1T may be, however, that Louisville
has impOrtuned and reached out her
generous hands 30 far and so wide and
has been 80 lavish In her preparations to
receive them that they dropped every
thing and came. 1t was worth a pil.
grimage to Mecca to hear DR.. Palmer's
great taddress-greati Ia the word--great
and grand. want every son and daugh.
ter OF Confederate veteran to read II
and feel inspired with Confederate
pride. The truth is we have whipped
this fight and the victory is ours; after
30 long q time we are slowly and surely
killing of the slanders. Barbara Freit
chic and Sheridan's ride are dead and
buried. The fact has now been estab
lishod that little Phil Sheridan never
rode at all-or, II he did, he rode the
other way-General Manning has set
tied that, and even the Northern press
admits it. He Is the braggart who sale
he would make our land so desolate the
crows would have to carry their rationi
| with them when they a,w over 1t
But the crows dident. The South II
all right--no crows-no buzzards ant
no carpet baggers-thank the goot
Lord for His mercies.
} As we journeyed hither the boy
I joined us all along the line. They cam,
. with shout OF hilarity, "All abosrt
for Louisville." Car after car was at
. tached at the country towns and rail-
, road functions, and before we reache,
8 Chattan )oga there were twelve coache
! full OF unrepentant, unrecOnstructe
l rebols. Our Cartersvllle boys wer
!" quiet and sober, but even old Fathe
, AlIday was as happy as II he had bee
Z sitting In tho amen corner OF the Meth
e odist church. He, too, had fought an
7 bled with the Texas Rangers, and tn
q Confederate cause is part OF his relie
Q ion, for he Ia now a preacher. III
Gang cong, part Of which was "Dixie
y and the other part Onward, Chris
il tian Soldiers" and IL had refrai
} about, Flight on, my soul Nee
n think the victory won, Nor lay thin
,- armor down."
d At Tullahoma he spi"d some beaut
It full strawberries and bought Who'll