The Indianapolis journal., 1903-06-21
There Are Three Hundred Acres I'm
the Tract of Land on which the
Buildings stand.
COMFORT FOR THE OLD VETERAN
EVERYTHING HAS BEEN ARRANGED
TO MAKE HIS LIFE EASY.
George w. Steele Largely Responsible
for Establishing the Home I'm the
Pretty Indiana City.

Seated in the front vestibule Of one of the
large inteurban cars Of the Union Traction
Company OF Indiana as it speeds its way
south bound on Home avenue, in the city
of Marion, the traveller notices, as he ap-
proaches Thirty-fourth street, standing out
prominently the beautiful stone arched
gateway guarding the entrance to the Ma
tional Home for Disabled Volunteer Sol
diers-a home the government has expend-
ed thousands OF dollars to establish and
beautify. to make ii appropriate and COM
Portable for the boys who wore the blue
during the troublesome days of the sixties.
The heavy iron gates that swing from these
stone pillars open every morning at
o'clock. and from this time until o'clock
at night. when the gates are closed, the
veterans OF the home pass out and in at
their will and hundreds OF visitors throng
the grounds. some to spend the day with
friends and loved ones, some to visit the
home for the first time and still others, for
whom the beauty and grandeur of the place
has an ever-growing fascination, return
again and again to spend a pleasant hour
within its confines. Whatever may be the
visitors purpose in coming. he always re-
ceives the same hearty welcome and cour-
teous treatment at the hands of the vet
Grams, and especially the veteran guides,
who are gOod-natured and talkative
and who take great delight in showing ev-
cry place of interest and explaining every
thing in detail. The visitor need ask no
questions, for the guides have had years of
experience in showing curious people about
the grounds until they seem to anticipate
questions and answer them without the
asking.
THREE HUNDRED ACRES.
The tract of land which the home
stands contains 800 acres. The home was
established here through an act of the Fif-
ty-first Congress and the earnest efforts of
Col. George w. Steele, of Marion. Much of
the tract is covered by the natural forest
and affords a beautiful, shady grove, the
delight of the veterans and visitors during
the summer season. Ample quarters have
been provided for the soldiers and officers
in the large brick structures which adorn
the grounds. Beautiful gravel driveways
and cement walks wind their way through
the place, among sweet-scented flower gar
dens and COOL refreshing fountains. Ma
ture has been most ably assisted by skillful
and willing hands in making this verita-
bic Eden for the boys who faced the perils
of civil war in the defense of the flag they
loved. And here they gather from all parts
of the United States robbed Of friends and
home ties; broken in health by days and
nights OF exposure on battlefields; grown In
years until the ambitions of youth no long
er prompt them to continue the struggle
for existence. they gather here to spend the
closing years of life surrounded by COM
rades who live in the same historic past.
The barracks. they are called. the
sleeping and living quarters for the soldiers.
They are thirteen in number. and are all
built on the same general plan, each made
TO accommodate one hundred men. Owing
TO the great demand for admission each
barrack has at times been made to shelter
nearly twice this number The wards or
sleeping rooms are at the ends Of the bar
racks. Each soldier is provided with a
comfortable bed, chair and locker, into
which he slows his belongings. 1t is to this
apartment that he comes each night at half
past to answer roll call. and at g. when
the bugler sounds taps and the lights are
turned out he lies down to sleep and pleas
ant dreams.
BACK FROM DREAMLAND.
At 5 o'clock reveille is sounded and the
veteran comes back from dreamland. The
morning toilet is made, and. with uniforms
neatly brushed and shoes polished, they
make their way at o'clock to the mess
hall, and another day begins. Extreme
cleanliness and order characterize the bar
racks and the veterans surely have every
reason to be thankful for the home thus
afforded them. The fourteenth barrack Is
now being built. This will be known as the
''Old Mems Barrack," and will accommo-
date three hundred men. In addition to the
conveniences offered by the other barracks.
this one will have its own mess hall, so that
the occupants need not leave the building
If they do not care TO do so.
The present mess hall is located in the
large court just next the barracks, and
here the veterans gather three times each
day with a regularity that characterizes
military rule. A well-organized army of
walters and cooks serve the hungry multi
tude with such ease and dispatch that the
entire one thousand for that is the capacity
of the dining hall. served and the meal
eaten within the hour allotted.
The hospital barracks is located to the
east of Steele Circle, and Will accommodate
225 persons. Here under the direction of
skilled physicians and surgeons and the
care Of corps Of women nurses, the vet
most modern hospital can afford. AT pres
ent over two hundred soldiers within
these hospital walls, some who have but
recently entered some who have been there
for years In order to shorten and brighten
the weary hours of waiting, flowers from
the Home greenhouse are distributed among
the sick twice each week, and stories are
Tead from papers. books and magazines.
THEIR SPIRITUAL WELFARE
The government has also provided for the
spiritual welfare of the soldier A large
and beautiful chapel has been erected, and
both Catholic and Protestant ministers are
employed and services conducted here
every Sunday morning and evening.
modern theater with seating capacity OF
600. has recently been opened for use and
some of the best plays that can be pre-
sented to the theater-going public are seen
here by the veterans free of charge. Lee
lures concerts and entertainments of al
kinds suitable TO the soldiers taste are
presented from this stage and it's all free
10 the occupants OF the home A well-se-
iected library Is maintained and In justic'