Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-05-29
BELONGED IO c. A. R.
Red Cross Nurse Once a Member
of Crocker Post, of les
Moines.
Governors Offices Will Be Nov
ed.-.Welsh Eisleddfod Meets
in Des Moines.
nR SGfY
Movement Against "Home Co
operation" Compromise...A
Murder Case.
Special to Times-Republican.

N'ADiA'S''
orally known outside Of Crocker post
circles that this largest of the Iowa
G. A. r. posts carried on it's rolls as
an honorary member for number OF
years the name of a Red Cross nurse
who is rightly credited with being one
of those who actually participated In
soldiers and from which incident may
4 be traced directly the beautiful Mem
orial day custom to be celebrated to-
morrow This was a Mrs. Evans, a
former resident of Michigan, but for a
time a resident of Iowa. She died in
I1SS3. The fact that she was pioneer
in the decoration of soldiers graves
came to the attention of the officers
of Crocker post while she was living
in Iowa and by resolution of the post
she was made an honorary member.
This was done to honor her and to
give recognition to one In every way
worthy, but in due time the name was
stricken from the rolls because 1t was
lagainst the rules of the grand army
to have any member of post other
than one who served honorably in the
army or navy. But little is known
there of Mrs. Evans. The story of her
life is preserved in the records of the
post The incident which gave her
fame occurred April 13, forty years
ago Already there We're graves of
soldiers buried on the Virginia hills
near Washington, graves of union and
lconfederate dead. In the Second Mich
iigan regiment camped near Washing
lton there was a certain Chaplain May.
4 His wife and daughters We're with the
,army. The two little girls We're out
gathering flowers and came upon the
grave of soldier. Let us decorate
the grave with flowers" said one. The
action followed. They told theii
mother, and this act of childish fancy
1 so appealed to the wife of Chaplain
May that she and her companion, Mrs.
/ Evans, Red Cross nurse with the
regiment, joined the two little girls
J in gathering flowers and decorating
, the gray ess of the buried dead on the
| Virginia hills. They did the same
thing the next year and other years
and their action attracted attention
which resulted, so it is claimed and
with much reason, in establishing the
Memorial day custom now so common.
! Of course it was Gen Logan who is
sued the first Memorial day order to
the G. A r. and fixed May so as the
date. Mrs Evans lived after the war
for time in Michigan, then in Iowa
but she and her companions on tina
first real decoration day, have all de-
parted. Her memory was honored by
~ nf
When the capitol commission comes
to the work of completing the state
capitol of Iowa a number of changes
lin the, rooms are likely to be made
Some changes may be made before the
capitol commission gets around to the
work. For instance, it is the inten-
ton of Gov. Cummins to make radi-
cal change in the arrangement of the
executive offices. He will take the
present reception room at the wese
end of the executive suite as his pri
vate office. This room has three win
dows and is both we'll lighted and
properly ventilated. Neither can be
said of the dark room into which all
the governors of Iowa have been con-
signed since Sherman's time, The
present executive office has but one
window and it opens into a court
Other state officials who go into the
governors private office complain that
it is poorly ventilated and they no.
tice the contrast between it and their
own offices. So Gov. Cummins plans
to get out of the old Office and fit UP
the reception room for his use. 1t
will be desirable change in many
WAYS tho not as convenient to the
work.
Plans are being laid in Des Moines
for the entertainment of the Iowa
eisteddfod. or Welsh festival January
1 next. 1t has been the deisire of the
Welsh people to have this festival held
in Des Moines, but not until last winter
was it made possible. John Hughes
Jr., representative from Iowa county |
a typical Welshman and much inter-
ested in the esteddfod, was instru-
mental in arousing sufficient interest !
in Des Moines to get the event here |
Generally the meetings have been held |
in the localities where the Welsh de-
scendants are numerous. There are 4
great many in Des Moines. but they
have never formed a society. This
may be done before the next festival |
is held. Among the events there is to
be a contest for the best oration in
of President Mckinley, the
prize offered by Gov. Cummins; an
Grafton giving a history of the eistedd
fod in Wales. q prize offered by I. j
of Ottumwa; and a prize of
fered in a vocal number by ex-Gov.
Drake The meeting will be in the new
Plymouth church.
The state fair is to be made en-
ioyable by the representation of "The
Last Days of Pompeii.' An effort is
being made to have this somewhat
by giving an illustration
OF the last eruption of Mont Pelee and
the destruction of st. Pierre.
The organizers and instigators of the
home cooperative" concerns against
which legislation was directed last
winter by the Iowa general assembly
are not to be left alone in their clo-
lation of the Iowa laws. Papers are
being prepared now for suits in this
county to test the right of some of
these companies to continue business u