Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1905-09-08
National Encampment In
Business Sessions.
Address Of Commander -in-Chief
Nng.--Reports Of Officers.
Five Candidates Are Fighting for Woman's
Relief Corps Presidency.

Denver, Col, Sept. 1.-THE first
meeting of the legislative body of the
39th annual encampment of the Grand
Army of the Republic began. today, al
the Broadway Theatre. With the ex-
ception of few minutes during which
state and city officials welcomed the
old soldiers to the city formally and
responding speeches were made by
Comn,ander-in-Ch John w. King
and others the sessions. today, were
secret. After accepting the roll, formal
presentation of a diamond badge to
ICommaE derinChief King, indicative
of his past communicating, was made.
1t was also announced that the aides
to Former Commander-in-Ch Will
mon w. Blackniar who died before
the expiration Of his term Of office,
would present loving cup to TIL.
widow of Gen. Blackmar.
| General King then delivered his adj :
dress. When he came to that part re-
ferring to the Daughters of Veterans
Association, memory of the recent loss
of his daughters, who were members
of the above association, overcame him
/ dllu lIc Sdl uO"Il, tic tCdlS
down his cheeks. The paragraph was
read by Past Communicative CHIEF
| Wagner.
| The address of the Commander-in-
Chief dwelt particularly upon the ex-
tensive tours of General Wilmon w.
Blackmar to the encampments in va
| rious parts of the country. In the
| months of April. May and June of this
year he succeeded in visiting Is en-
campments and four camp-fires in 30
different departments, and was on his
way to visit the departments in the
Northwest, when at Boise, Idaho, on
July 16. he was stricken by death Gin
| the zenith of his successful career and
| in the full glory of his brilliant man.
hood"
The address continues: He was
| Jealous to a fault: and in order to ac-
complish the itinerary mentioned
above. and to attend some thirty other
campfires not mentioned therein. he
was obliged to travel over thirty thou
sand miles. and endure the fatigue of
living and sleeping on railroad trains
for many weary days. All this he die
cheerfully and uncompainingly. be-
| Cduot IL was lol lle SooOd VI tlS vi anu
Army that he loved, ard the large ex-
| pense attending his travels was his
contribution to it's treasury. The re-
ports of officers and committees, with
| the comments and recommendations
he would have made thereon, besides
other subjects in which he took deep
interest, are herewith submitted for
the benefit of this encampment."
Speaking of the pension statistics the
address pointed out that during the
year the pension bureau of Washing
| ton granted 12,436 original pensions
and 1859 increased pensions. The
pension rolls now contain the names
of 6S460S survivors of the Civil War
as against 69O.692 at the close of 1904.
During the year 30.324 survivors of the
| Civil War died. With reference to
| veteran legislation at Washington it
was pointed out that through the exer-
tons of the G.. A. r. committee on
| legislation and the influence of the
Commander in chief, the bill which
| was introduced in Congress in April
| 1904 by which all the veterans 10 years
| of age and over would be discharged
| i'm 1907. never was called up for con-
sideration. It's suppression was char
| acterized in tribute of the commit
tee and to the sober second thought by
the persons by whom it was intro
dhced. Vigilance, however. the adj
dress emphasized, must not be re-
Taxed, as similar measures are liable
st any tire to be introduced and upon
this most important committee must
devolve the duty Of preventing our
ffice-holding comrades from being de-
rrivei of their well-earned means OF
livelihood.
Dwelling upon Memorial Day, the
address brought out that the soldiers
anniversary has now become an insti-
tuition of the land as firm and immova-
BILE as independence Day itself. In
this connection, it was said, How fit
ting it Is that in death the graves of
our countrys saviors should be
crowned by the emblem of the watch
word that was theirs in life! Just
here we are reminded that many of
these martyrs to liberty and unity lie
in graves not visible to the human eye.
They are those who went down to the
sea in ships" who fought their coun-
| try's enemies bravely and unf1inching-
| ly, with nothing between them and
eternity but a sheet Of iron and
plank. For many years no attempt
was made to decorate their graves on
Memorial Day; but now. thanks to
our loyal and Jealous auxiliary, the
Woman's Relief Corps, no grave Is me-
elected, whether on land or in the
mighty deep. The beautiful ceremony
of strewing the waters Of our rivers
and lakes with flowers, first instituted
on the banks of the Illinois River at
Peoria. ILL.,. in 1898, by that worthy
spouse of a worthy comrade, Mrs.
John c. Black. wife of our Past Com
mander-in-Chief,h has been adopted on
all sides: and. with the help of the ex-
cellent formula, published by Mrs. ga
rah d. Winans. the National President
of the wonian's relief corps in 1904. the
memorial service to the soldier-sailor
BAD bids fair to be followed as long
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