The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1903-08-14
CITIZENS TENDER
FAREWELL |. BANQUET
TO COL. cEO.E. POND
Glowing Tributes and Heartfelt
Regrets Are Expressed by
Representative Business Men
of the City-B Beautiful Silver
ServiceIs Pres ented.

Commercial club last night, was at
tended by some of the most prominent
men of the city and the Northwest, a
number of whom paid glowing tributes
officer and to the good work he has
done for Fort Smelling and the Depart
ment of the Dakotas.
Following a banquet, at which there
were about seventy invited guests, M.
D. Grover was introduced as toast
master.
'eThere is nothing more delightful"
said Mr. Grover, than to gamer mere
in this way to express our love and
high esteem for a fellow citizen, al
though the occasion is one of deep re-
gret at the loss of one who has become
! so dear to us during the few years ne
| has spent in our midst"
| Mr.. Grover said many things when
were complimentary to Col. Pond, ana
| closed his remarks by introducing Con-
gresham Fred c. Stevens.
| Friend of Fort Smelling.
at cannot say that it is exactly a
| pleasure to meet to bid god speed TO
one who has been with us so long ana
to one who has gained place In our
hearts as has our guest of honor" said
Congressman Stevens. Still it is a
joy, pleasure and pride to know that he
goes to greater honor and responsible
ity. Col. Pond has contributed much
to the richness of the life of this COM
munity. Probably no other man has
had more to do with the improvement
of historic Fort Smelling, and I know
that he is proud of the old fort, found
ed three generations ago. There are
number here, most of them with gray
hairs, who will remember when Fort
Smelling was about all there was here
| 1t is but fair to say that the CONNER
! cial bodies of the Twin Cities are
! largely responsible for the improve
ment at the fort and for the improve
mentS which We expect to be made
| there in the near future, yet it Is well
known that the beginning of this great
work was due almost entirely to the
efforts of three men, and those three
men were James j. Hill, Archbishop
John Ireland and Thomas Cochran.
ut was these men who first inter-
ested Secretary Root and the war de-
partment in Fort Smelling and i'm
pressed upon him and the war depart
ment the Importance of the post as a
strategic point.
But the tireless efforts of Col. Pond
in this direction should not be over
looked. The enlargement of the fort
has been the one dream of his life, and
it was upon him that the war depar-
ment relied. He is the one man in the
army who has done more than any
other to help US along with our pet
plans for the Improvement of the dear
old fort.
81 hope to see the time when there
will be stationed at Smelling 100 Off
GERS and 1000 troops, and believe that
time is not far distant The American
soldier is considered the bravest man
in the world, and Col Pond has done
his share towards making him so. /
hope to see the time when Col. Pond will
be made chief quartermaster of the en-
tire United States army
Tender Silver Service.
Timothy Reardon, in behalf Of a
| number of the personal friends of Col.
Pond presented beautiful silver serv-
| ice, which was received with a show of
| much feeling. by Col. Pond. In pre-
| senting the testimonial Mr.. Reardon
said:
MANY nice things have been said
about you-none too many, l assure
you-but just let me say, sir, that
those of us who have more recently
been brought into business relations
with you, desire to emphasize and in
dorse all that has been, and will be,
said. We have found you to be bust
ness man most pleasant to meet one
| who always carefully guards the in
terests of the government, and at all
times working in<harmony with those
whose business it is to supply the de-
| mands of the department You have
always been Just. We. your friends,
and the whole city is full of them, re-
gret to see you go, and with the hope
that sometimes you may think of your
friends here, they have prepared this
testimonial of their high regard for
you, and beg you to accept it, and we
trust that you and those dear to you
may live many days in which you may
enjoy it,
Following the presentation of the
silver service, j.. J. McCardy arose and
addressed Col. Pond.
Knowing that an army man is often
in need of encouragement and some
thing to give him cheer and backbone. .
said Mr.. McCardy, your friends de-
sire to present you with another testi-
monial, and they hope that it may
serve you WE'LL
With these few words Mr.. McCardy
presented Col. Pond with a silver
liquor flask, amid the cheers of the
guests.
Gen. Kobbe was the next speaker.
He said the departure of Col Pond was
both an official and personal loss to
him.
Soldier at Fifteen.
And I am going to tell you some
thing about Col. Pond which know he
will not tell you HIMSELF said Gen.
Kobbe. He was born in small town
In Connecticut, in the midst of the pie
| belt. He will have to admit himself
that ne is Yankee In every sense of
| the word.
But I want to tell you that he eniovs
the distinction of having been the onlv
cadet at West Point who was a veteran
| soldier and one who had been. badly
wounded at that. At the age of fifteen he
{olned ,; me volunteers and served his coun-
army he entered West Point, and later
| ne served his country as cayalryman
| IN new Mexico. Arizona and other South
western points until the breaking out of
an old wound received in the Civil war
made it necessary for him to leave the
cavalry and attach himself to the staff
OF the army. His record is indeed one
| OF which he should be proud and one
| in which his friends take much pride. At
OF half dozen or more staff officers
SELF
Col. Pond Responds.
| Col Pond was called upon and spoke
with considerable feeling.
am not speechmaker'' said the
| guest Of honor. But 1 am glad of an OBJ
portunity to say that 1 am deeply i'm
| pressed by this testimonial I have done
nothing since coming here except what
l thought to be my duty and had not ex-
/ pected anything of this kind for doine
| my plain duty came to Fort Smelling
on ST. Patrlck's day, in 1899, after serv-
many many places have never left one of them
with SO much regret. love st. Paul and