The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1903-05-31
MEMORIAL DAY
AT ARLINGTON
Thousands Visited the Graves of
the Nations Dead.
ALL BUSINESS SUSPENDED
IMPRESSIVE GRAFTON BY CHAs.
EMORY SMITH.

Washington, May 3O.-With solemn
and impressive ceremonies Memorial
day was observed in the national cap
ital on more elaborate scale than
ever before. Business was suspended
not only in the departments Of the
government, but throughout the city.
People of all classes united in perpet-
Uating the memory of the heroic dead
who, in thousands, sleep peacefully in
the eight national cemeteries Of the
District of Columbia Soldier mOnu-
ments and statues on the government
reservations were hag-draped, flags on
all of the public buildings were at half
mast and the national cOiors with folds
caught in bands of crepe, were dis
played from hundreds Of private resi-
dences Notwithstanding the absence
from the city of the president, who IS
usually a conspicuous figure in the eX-
ercises at Arlington, the arrangements
were elaborate and beautiful They
were under the direction of the depart
ment Of the Potomac Q. A. r. and in
cluded a parade of @. A r. posts, the
old guard other patriotic organizations
and the militia of the district, headed
by the Marine band; decorations of
monuments and graves and addresses
by men prominent in public life. The
weather was perfect, cool, but with
brilliant sun from a clOudless sky
Exercises at Arlington.
After a short march through the city
the organizations in the parade
boarded the electric trains for Airing
ton, where the principal exercises We're
held. The procession reformed at the
gates and a national salute was fired
by the Fourth bassery, United States
field artillery, as it entered the grounds.
Already the $4,000 graves in the Gene
terry had been strewn with flowers and
each marked by a tiny American flag,
- women of the societies auxiliary to the
veterans organization having been en-
gagged in the patriotic work since early
morning. A touching feature Of the
ceremony, a feature typifying a cOun-
try thoroughly reunited, was the dec
Grafton of the graves in that section Of
the ceremtery where lie the confeder-
ate dead
The procession marched to the tomb
Of the unknown dead" which had
been beautifully decorated by a special
committee, and the Marine band rem
dered a solemn dirge. The march was
then resumed to the section allotted TO
the Spanish war dead. where another
dirge was played. At the conclusion Of
the ceremony of decorating the graves
a great crowd gathered in the amphi-
theatre. There, under direction of de-
partment officials, impressive services
LOT the StlluleI utdu were CBlluuCltu
Impressive Grafton.
Charles Emory Smith, editor of the
Philadelphia Press, delivered the ora
ton of the day He spoke in part as
follows:
The beauty and sanctity of Memo
rial day, instead of declining, rather in
creases with the passing years. The
Grand Army beneath the sod constant
~ swells in numbers. The Grand Army
which survives approaches closer to the
final bivOuac. The old graves lose none
of their hallOwed glory and new graves
add to the wealth of flower and at
lection laViShed on these COnSeCrated
spots. Here at Arlington is the CEN
ter OF the nations tribute. If the flow
eT-cTOwned mounds could open and
yield up their deniZens as they were in
life they could assemble under these
trees overlooking the broad bosom of
the Potomac and yOnder capitol Of the
republic. the largest council of illus
triOus leaders of the war that could be
marshaled al any place And if they
were thus assembled they would rec
ognize that the republic has not been
ungrateful to her defenders She has
been generous 20 the dead and to the
living. This was your just duty. You
and these who fought with you did the
greatest work which has ever been
wrought for the nation
The issues which bred the strife of
sections have been settled. The re-
union of the sections has been sealed
in common sacrifice IL the crucible
of a common struggle the lines of sec
lions should be melted and in the new
destiny the map of the Union should
no longer be divided into north and
south. The old issues have passed
away. There are new questions of
deep import: questions which come in
part as legacies Of the old and which
may tend IN some measure to excite
the old feeling. There is the problem
of dealing with a race which has been
emancipated from slavery and yet not
committed to the privileges of free
dom"
Monuments Unveiled.
Later in the afternoon The mOnu-
ment and bust of the late Senator
Cushman K Davis Of Minnesota was
unveiled. The GRAFTON was pronounced
by Henry A Castle Of Minnesota. au-
dtOr for the pOstoffice department.
Under the auspices of various posts of
the G. A r. memorial services were
held in all the cemeteries in the District
of Columbia. The orators of the day
at the several ceremonies were as fol-
lows
Soldiers home cemetery. Edward p
Seeds. Congressional cemetery, Captain
Thomas H Mckee GlenwOod Prospect
Hin St Mary's and Mount Olivet
Jointly, Honorable John W Yerkes.
commissioner of internal revenue; Oak
Hill cemetery. Honorable w NJ Mil
Ter. assistant secretary of the interior;
St Elizabeth's cemetery, Rev DR. A. 5.
Fisk: battle-ground cemetery. Chaplain
g. c. Pierce, T. :. A. Harmon ceme-
terry. John g. Daney. recorder OF deeds
District of Columbia.