The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1900-06-10
Bill APPS Letter
He Takes in the Conferedate
Hand Shake. Says
He Likes Louis
Vile.

u
the great Confederate Veteran Reunion
at Louisville. Nothing like it has been
witnessed since the close of the Civil
War. 1t passeth comprehension This
is Thursday the second day, and there
are now gathered twice as many vete-
rams as ever gathered anywhere. For
many years we were not allowed to gath
or 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 unfurl
our banners and even the boys in blue
join in the general hilarity. l remem-
Der when General George H. Thomas was
here in 1866 and / have preserved let
ter from him in which he said we Ro-
mans must not exhibit Confederate
flag any more in public nor even keep
one in private, for it was the emblem
of treason and the punishment of trea-
son was death. Our Roman young men
and maidens had used an old tattered
banner in tableau exhibition that was
given in the city hall to raise a lit
tie money to put back some pews in
the city churches, for the Federals had
taken out the pews and used them for
horse troughs and used the churches for
proyender That old war-stained ban
ner 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 IL
no harm to place it in dead soldier S
hand in tableau scene of field after
the battle. Then We were allowed to
think what we pleased, but now we can
say what we please and do what we
please and there's no treason in it, What
a good doctor old Father Time is. Why
he was a Federal soldier who opened
the ball at Phenix Hall last night and
gave a welcome to the veterans. Cap
tain Pirtle was one of the boys in blue,
but he paid tribute to us and spoke kind
and loving words and would put us on
the pension rolls if he could. He is a
great big hearted gentleman, he is.
There are II 900 veterans here now
sure enough veterans who wore the gray,
and they are the Invest men in dead
cause the world ever saw. There are
twice as many here as were in Charleston
last year. Captain Pirtle said in his ad-
dress OF welcome THE city is yours,
and it is. Such hospitality was never
witnessed anywhere. Just read the pa
pers and it will amaze you. There are
veterans here in business who entertain
every one who is left of their old regi-
ments Here is Captain Norton, who
went out from Rome with the Light
Guards and has accumulated fortune
here since the war. He wrote letter TO
every surviving member of the Eighth
Georgia regiment, urging them to come
and to he his guests, / am proud to be
one of them, and Colonel Towers is here,
too, giving orders from these headquar-
A la a
rapid passing of the Confederate vet
Grams and we really feared we would
never more gather enough of them to
make it interesting. But here they have
doubled in number and tribbied in life
and it can't be accounted for unless the
States have increased their pensions
Money helps to prolong life. no doubt of
It, Georgia now gives half million
year to her old soldiers and they just
keep living on and on
Time cuts down ALL
Both great and small.
Except pensioned soldier,
They do not die,
But multiply.
1t may be, however, that Louisville has
importuned and reached out her generous
hands so far and so wide and been so
that they dropped everything and came.
1t was worth a pilgrimage to Mecca to
hear DR.. Palmer's great address-great is
the woPld-great and grand. | want every
son and daughter of a Confederate vet
eran to read it and feel inspired with
Confederate pride. The truth is, we have
whipped in this fight and the victory is
ours after so long a time we are slowly
off 10 C1 IA
ra Freitche and Sheridan's ride are dead
and buried. The fact has now been es-
tablished that little Phil Sheridan never
rode at all-or, if he did he rode the
other way-General Manning has settled
that, and even the Northern press adj
mits it, He is the braggart who said he
would make our land SO desolate the
crows would have to carry their rations
with them where they flew over it.
But the crows dident. The South is all
right-no crows-no buzzards and no car
pet baggers-thank the good Lord for
His mercies.
AS we journeyed hither the boys joined
us all along the line. They came with a
shout of hlarity. "All aboard for Louis
ville," Car after car was attached at the
country towns and railroad functions, and
before we reached Chattanooga there
were twelve coaches full of unrepentant,
unreconstructed rebels. Our Gainesville
boys were quiet and sober, but even old
Father Allday was as happy as if he had
been sitting in the amen corner of the
Methodist church. He, too, had fought
and bled with the Texas Rangers, and the
Confederate cause is part of his religion,
for he is now preacher. He sang song,
part of which was Dixie" and the other
part Onward. Christian Soldiers" and
it had refrain about Fight on, my
soul; Meier think the victory won, Nor
lay thine armor down
At Tullahoma he spied some beautiful
Strawberries and bought a whole crate
of thirty-sX baskets. and his good, pa
triotic wife distributed them to the vet
Grams in our car. There were just thirty
six of us. and we had a whole basket for
each All along the line in Tennessee
pretty girls came to the doors of their
homes and cheered us, and waved little
Confederate flags. | could not hear all
the good stories the boys were telling as
We speeded along. bu, scraps came to my