The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1900-06-14

generous bands SO far and 80 wide and
has been SO lavish in her preparations to
receive them that they dropped every.
| thing and came. 1t was worth a nil.
grimagc to Mecca to hear DR.. Palmcr's
great t..ddrcss--great is tho word great
and grand. | want every son and daugh
| ter of u Confederate veteran to read it
and foel inspired with Confederate
pride. The truth is, we have whipped
this fight and the victory is ours; aftor
80 long u time we are slowly and surely
killing on the slandors. Barbara Frcit-
chic and Sheridan's rido arc dead and
buried. The fact has now been estab-
lishcn that little Phil Sheridan never
rode at all-or, II he did, he rode the
"thor way--Gcncral Manning has set
tied that, and even the Northern press
admits it. He is the braggart W no said
he would make our land SO dcsolate the
crows would have to carry their rations
with them when they How over it.
But the crows didcnt. The South Is
at right no crows--no SuHzards and
no carpet baggcrs-- thank the good
Lord for His mcrcics.
AS we lourncycd hithcr tho bows
Joined Ms all along the line. They came
with shout OF hilarity, "Nll aboard !
Tor l.ouisvillc.' Car after car WAS At
lachru NJ the country towns and rail !
road functions, and before we reached |
Chattan oEa there were twelve coaches |
uIl "l unrcpcntant, unrcconstructcd |
rchoIs. Oar Cartcrsvlllc boys were
quiet ana sober, but even old Father
h!idaY WAS rs happy rs II he had been
sitting IN the amen corner OF the Meth,
odist church. lie, too, had fought and |
hIcd with the Texas hangers, unI the |
Contcdcrate cause is part Of his relg.
loh, Tor no Is now preacher. He
sang a song, part OF which WAS "Dlxic"
ana the OtfGr part Oawaru, Chris
tian Soldiers" and it had n refrain
about, Eight ON, my soul Nicer
think the victory won, Nor lay thine
armOr down."
Az Tullahoma no spi'd some hcuuti.
tut straw berries and bought u whole
crate of thirty-siX baskets, and his
good, patriotic wife distributed them
10 tho veterans in our car. There were
Just thlrty-5iX OF us, and we had a
whole basket for each. All along the
linc IN tennessee pretty girls came to
The doors OF thCir homes and Chccrcd |
W., and waved little Confederate Il .gs.
| could not hear all the good stories
tho boys were telling as wo specded |
along, but scraps came to my eager
cars rs--scrapS about old Joe Johnston
and Chicknmauga ana Murfrccsboro
and Franklin and lioot and Long.
street. think We whipped em every
where, from tho way the boys talked |
aEOu. il.
But it would take a book to narrntc
the stories OF The boys, Tor it is fact
that the experience Of most any vrte
ran would fill II book fun Of interesting
rcailug. Some Of it would be thrilling,
some sad, some amusing, and all inter
Ing. The camp lire stories OF the civil
war will never be written. Ten thou
sand books could not contain them, but
at these reunions many OF them are re-
told, aud the boys find willing listen
crs. These reunions are prcscrvcrs Of
history and uf horoism. They Impress
tho North with a feeling of respect and
rcvcrnnce for our earnostncss aud our
abiding faith in tho Justice OF our
cause. There Is no weakening, no sur
rendering OF principle ; we still say to
the NDrLhcrn soldier, You thought
You were right, and we forgive you,
but you muscnt do SO any mo e.'
The venerable and vcncratcd DR..
Palmer delivered IL grand address that
should be read and pOndercd by the
youth Oi the South. Ho has exhausted
the argument and no answer can be
made to it. Louisville is all ablnzc
With Confederate cmblems and COnfcd-
crate glory, and the city is ours.
But | can't see the end OF this great
reunion. Comrades have nearly shak-
en- ny arm of already, and the boys
have troddGn on my sore toe hundred
times. My evening maps arc broken up,
and my garden needs looking after, for
| am the boy-thc only boy-and |
know that my little pets are moaning
| for me. And more than all this, to.
morrow Is my wife's birthday; and, as
Co~pcr wrote OF John Gilpin:
Tomorrow il her birthday
And how the folks would stare
II she should dine at Gainesville
And should not be there"