Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1904-09-21
Society of the Army of the Cum
berland Has d Rousing
Meeting
ROOSEVELT WRITES A LETTER
Generals BIackmar, Grosvenor and
Others kindle the Old Fires in
Hearts of Thousands With Their Or
atory - General Boynton Elected
President and Dave Henderson For
Iowa.

Indianapolis, Ind, Sept. 21.-To the
bugle note of assembly" which forty
years ago was stirring music upon the
battlefield, the gray haired veterans Of
the civil war, on whose memory are
craven awful pictures of battle anc
carnage and in whose ears linger ths
roll of musketry ana the roar of can
non, assembled in the Claypool audi
torium last night for the public exer.
cises which marked the closing of the
first days session of the thirty -tiftt
annual reunion of the Society of the
Army of the Cumberland.
Deafening cheers greeted Genera
Wilmot w. Blacl1mar, COMMANDER
chief Of the G. A. r., as he entered
the hall at the head of column OF
old comrades in their uniform of blue
Precisely at 8 o'clock General II. v
Boynton Of Washington, ID. c., presl-
dent Of the society, called the meeuils
to order and the audience bowed It's
head while DR.. D. r. Lucas of INDIAN
apolis offered prayer.
Judge D. w. Howe welcomed the
visitors. General. John L. Wlluer'
Knoxville, Tenn, who during the BAT
tile campaigns of the Cumberland ar
nv commanded the famous Wilder
brigade" responded.
Letters From Notable Men.
Following the response General
Boynton read Letters from President
Roosevelt, whitelaw Reid and Judge
Alton B. Parker.
President Roosevelt's letter read as
follows:
"oyster Bay, N. Y, Aug. 80. 1904
My Dear General Boynton:. Permit me
thru you, to extend my hearty good
wishes to the Society Of the Army OF
the Cumberland at its reunion In In
dianapolis. / only wish it were in my
power to be present.
"The record of the Society of the
Army of the Cumberland is indeed
noteworthy. Three of its members
were presidents of the United States
Grant, Garfield and Harrison. -Four
commanded the army after the civil
war-Grant, Sheridan, Sherman and
Schofield. Two reached the supreme
court-Mathers and Harlan. You have
had many members in the cabinet, in
the senate and in the house Of repre-
sentatives. One of them, General Kei-
fer, became speaker of the house.
''For this exceptional record. you are
entitled to the respect and admiration
of your countrymen; but, after all, the
great claim, the undying claim that
you have upon all the people of this
nation rests upon the fact that all OF
you, from the major general to the
private, did your full part in that great
brotherhood Of men who formed the
union army from 1851 to 1865 and who
during those four years rendered not
only to our people but to all mankind
the greatest service which it was given
to any men of the nineteenth century
to render. The men who served in the
great civil war left to their children
and their children's children, unto the
remotest generation, not merely the
sense Of belonging to a nation which
has before it a future so vast that even
It's most loyal sons can hardly venture
to anticipate it, but you left to them
also the memory of the way in which
that formidable army of fighting men,
when once the war was ended. turned
forthwith to the pursuits of peace and
showed themselves good citizens at
home, just as they had shown them
selves good soldiers at the front. In
any great crisis of war, this nation