The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1905-06-01

Raleigh Post.
E. j. Hale, w. Z. Kyle, John H.
Thorpe, W. II. Taylor and X. H. Ricks.
commissioners on the part of North
Carolina for the Bethel Monument
Association. announce all things in
readiness for the Joint Virginia and
North Carolina unveiling ceremonies
June 10th.
At the unveiling June 10th Gov
ernor Montague of Virginia, will well
come the North Carolinians and Gov
ernor Glenn of North Carolina, will
respond. The governors of all the
Southern States have been invited.
1t was in response to the memorial
presented to the general assembly by
the subcommittee appointed by the
North Carolina Historical Commits
sion on August 25, 1904, (see page
13, Five Points in the Record of
North Carolina in the Great War of
1S61-5'), that bill was passed
March >, 1905, creating the Bethel
Memorial Commission, and appro-
priatinS $3.50 for the erection of Il
tablet to mark the spot at Bethel
where fell Henry l.. Wyatt, the first
Confederate soldier killed in battle in
that war. The commissioners named
were Maj. E. j. Hale, chairman; Capt.
W. E. Kyle, Capt. J.H. Thorpe, Capt.
W. B. Taylor and Hon. R. H. Kicks.
In the autumn of 1904 the chair
man of the subcommittee above re-
ferred to suggested to Capt. W. E.
Kyle and to the j E. B. Stuart Chap
ter Daughters OF the Confederacy, at
Fayetteville, that they take steps to
acquire possession, if possible, of the
site where Wyatt fell, it being under
stood that the desired sites on the
other battlefields were being looked
after by other members of the His
tOrical Commission. After much cor
respOndence with officials in Virginia
the chairman named in the bill fOl
the Bethel commission learned
through a letter received by Mr.. r.
H. Bradley from a friend in Virginia
that the Confederate organizations
of Elizabeth City, York and Warwick
counties and the city OF Newport
News, Virginia, had on June 10, 1904
formed the Bethel Monument AssO
ciatiOn, with the object OF erecting 4
monument at Bethel battlefield or
June 10. 1905.
AS the bill for creating the Bethe
Commission was then February g.
still hung up in the house, this letter
was turned over to the Daughters o
the Confederacy, who, through thei1
vice-president and historian, Miss
Mallett, at once opened correspond
ence with the Virginia association. L
. was learned that this association hat
not only secured options on the Bethe
> battlefield sites, but that they alread,
a had under contract a monument tt
S be placed near the church and {
a marker to be placed where Wyatt
y fell.
When these facts were made known
it was thought by some of the veter
e ans of the Bethel regiment that W
! should allow the Virginians to g
T. ahead by themselves, and that W
t should have our unveiling in 1906
J. By others of them that we SHOULD
avail ourselves OF the wOrldwid
J. stage for our ceremonies which woul
t be presented by the Jamestowne expo
e sition in 1907, when funds for an in
!. posing monument might be raised b.
o private subscription.
e AS the Virginians possessed the OF
tions on the sites; as they said tina
l. they had last year notified the at
IS thorities in North Carolina of thei
: purpose and had received no response
., o. as they invited our cooperation i
. the most cordial terms, and offere
d to turn over to us the Bethel site fO
= the price which they were to pay fo
, it, and to change the inscription o
) the large monument so as to rea(
). Erected by the Virginia and Mort
= Carolina Monument Association,
d and as we were admonished by til
i rapidly thinning ranks Of the veteran
e. that we could not afford the delay {
. even one or two years-it was, ate
N consideration of these and all otht
'. things connected with the matte