The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1905-03-06
VETERANS TO HOLD
ANNUAL ENCAMPMENT
Members of Minnesota De.
pdrtment of G. A. r. Here
This Week

For two days this week St Paul will
entertain the members of the Mime
sofa department of the Grand Army OF
the Republic and the wives and fam
lilies of those members. The annual
encampment, the thirty ninth in the
history of the department, will be held
in the hall of representatives in the
old capitol Wednesday and Thursday.
During the same days the annual
meeting of the state division of the
Woman's Relief corps will be in ses-
sion in the Central Park NJ. E. church
and of the Ladies of the G. A. r. in
the Odd Fellows hall Upon Wednes-
day evening the annual campfire will
be held in the Peoples church, and for
this occasion an elaborate programme
is being prepared.
The encampment this year will prob
ably be one of the largest midwinter
meetings in the history of the order,
as every year more of the veterans of
the civil war are finding themselves
free from business cares and conse-
quently attend the encampment.
Campfire Wednesday Evening
The campfire to be held at the Peo-
pies church on Wednesday evening
will be the only meeting of the en-
campment which will be open to Wis
1torS The campfire will be open to all
who wish to attend and a programme
is being prepared which will surely
cause the house to be crowded with
visitors
Harrison White, commander of the
department of Minnesota, will preside
and addresses of welcome to the visit
ing soldiers and their wives will be
delivered by Gov. Johnson upon behalf
of the state and Mayor Smith upon be-
half of the city Commander White
will respond to both of these welcomes
in a general speech of thanks.
A number of other speeches will be
delivered by prominent men of the
Grand Army and of the state. Among
the speakers will be G. f. Macdonald
of st. Cloud. Oar f. Reese of st. Paul,
George Whitney of Wadena and Judge
John Day Smith of Minneapolis. Mu-
steal numbers will be interspersed
throughout the programme, being fur
nished by the Odd Fellows male quar-
tette and by soloists of the city.
Will Present Medals
During the course of the evening
Department Commander Harrison
White will make the formal presenta-
ton of medals to the successful con-
testants in the competition which he
inaugurated last fall in the high
schools of the state for the best essays
upon Gen. u. S. Grant. Mrs. A. w.
Savage, state president of the w. r. c.,
will also award the medal which was
offered for the best essay upon a given
subject to the pupils of the st. Paul
Central high school.
The annual election Of department
officers will occur during the executive
session Thursday afternoon. The race
for the position of department COM
mander to succeed Harrison White,
retiring, promises to be a lively one
At the present time there are three ac-
. knowledged candidates in the field,
with C. f. Macdonald of st. Cloud
Slightly in the lead, and George Whit
ney of Wadena and Bates of Duluth
close seconds
Interest has so centered itself in this
principal contest that but little has
been said of the minor positions. James
o. Pierce Of Minneapolis is the only
acknowledged candidate for the posi-
ton of senior vice commander, and no
names have been publicly presented
for the post of Junior vice commander.
For Widows and Wives
One of the principal matters of bust
ness to come before the encampment
is that of the establishment of cot
tages at the soldiers home for the
reception of the widows and wives of
INDECENT old soldiers. A committee was
appointed at the encampment held a
year ago to report upon this PROPOSE
ton, winch is being chanploned by the
auxiliary organizations of the Grand
Army, and it is understood that the
report of this committee will be IA
vorable to the movement. A bill is
now pending in the legislature for the
appropriation of 100000 for this pur-
pose and the encampment will I'M
doubtedly lend it's Endorsement to the
movement and petition the legislature
to pass the appropriation.
Tuesday evening at the Metropolitan
hotel the delegates to the meeting of
the Woman's Relief corps will give a
reception to the old soldiers and their
friends, when light refreshments will
be served and a short musical pro-
gramme given. During the encamp-
ment the G. A. r. and the W. r. c.
will make the Metropolitan official
headquarters, while the headquarters
of the Ladies of the G. A. R. will be
maintained at the Windsor.