The Pensacola journal., 1907-06-05
On 4 LITTLE
JOURNEY To
OLD FIELDS
Interesting Letter from a
Pensacola Veteran in
the Old Dominion.
HISTORIC BATTLE GROUNDS AS
SEEN NOW, AND AS RECALLED
TO THE EYE AND MIND OF MR..
w. n. TRIMMER-SOME OF THE
HIGH PLACES IN HISTORY.
BY w, n. Trimmer,

Norfolk, Va, June Here | am in
Norfolk, where forty-five years ago /
heard the roar of the guns in the en-
gagement between the Merrimac and
| the Monitor. The Merrimac was
originally wooden frigate of so guns
built at Boston as one of the five au-
| thorized by congress. Another was
the Niagara, another the Wabash.
The Merrimac being out of commits
sion in 1860, was at Gosport Navy
Yard. housed over at the time The
yard was burned. She was then
taken, cut down, and covered with
railroad iron, and drew about 26 feet
of water when she rammed and sunk
the frigate Congress, which had but
shortly before come off the Brazilian
nation. The Cumberland, also
wooden ship, was sunk. Admiral
Franklin Buchanan was on the Mer-
Timac, the same Buchanan who fought
the ram Tennessee in Mobile harbOr,
with Farragut on the Hartford
! | have been out to-day off Newport
News, where the bones of the origin
al iron clad Ry Thursday. l spent
in Richmond, where, after the morn
ing ceremonies at the auditorium, the
gathering of the Confederate hosts of
old veterans who heard their COM
mander, Stephen d. Lee, with rapt
attention. -----~-------.-------
Then the distinguished governor of
Virginia. in his brilliant style held
for thirty minutes an audience of
some four thousand, and at two
o'clock and immense procession, not
only of soldiers, but citizens, men.
women and CHILDREN marched out to
the beautiful cmetery at Holly
wood" TO witnessth unveiling of the
-T,-ip 4nT1r 10
general, J. E. B. duart
Returning to Richmond late in the
evening l found he city ablaze with
light, all her Principal decorated
street being electrified. and the hand
some buildings. Otels, etc, being
profusely decOratd-
Friday, soon afer day, l took the
c. and o. train OWN the peninsula.
passing Williamsburg, where the
Second Florida, uder General Ma
gruder, lost its gahnt Colonel Ward
and others The filds on either side
OF the railroad nov show gardens of
Irish potatoes and cabbages. The
sleek fat cattle upto their knees N
white clover. show plainly the ad-
} vantages of such fiR pasture About
8 a. m. l arrived Newport News,
and transferred to a powerful and
very large ferry bCt-the style and
build of the ferry soats | saw fifty
years ago in New York. The fare
from Richmond anC return, giving
two days was s2.5C
Out on the broa Chesapeake. AT
anchor. | counted hree masted
schooners. ship or:wo, two or three
iron monitors and hlf a dozen steam
ships. all small.
The run on tn wide estuary.
| iah in h1I
hour at jamestown Down further
near Hampton Road in the distance,
were the white bait ships at anchor I
| l was convinced ] very few
minutes of observatn that this mag
niff"ent exhibition VS. far from being
ready for visitors. he roadways and
e'd"wa HIS are in a eDlorabl cOndi- I
tiOn, and large force of Iaborers are /
at work, varioUsly coupled cement /
ing vast eXcavatiOs, stoning and /
grading, planking an building side |
walks, etc. The bu1ings are large |
and very fine some obrick. others o. /
stone, evidently beip:inJended to re- !
main for future |rvh. They gener- |
ally present a finishe appearance RI
went into the states aiding A num-
Der of states have n exhibits, Flor
ida for one. Califoia's is fairly
good, but not half asfine as at St. |
Louis. Georgia has avery fine min
leral exhibit
Transportation. libel arts. manu-
facturies. and, in fac most of the
buildings show a Grea lack of COM
Ipletness. The L ( government
buildings and Smithsoan Institute
are very complete. the. exhibits be
Ing virtually the same aat St. Louis.
There is no lack of side shows.
Really. there appears be more of
this class of Midway ste. with res
taurants and eating plas. than anv
thing else. The chargelt entrance
admits to all the reguh buildings.
but the catch penny" shows are
very numerous
| I would give pieceOf advice
which. if taken. NAV sav much dis
appointment I advise al who con
template visiting this sho to put il
of to the end of July least. or
still better the second Vek in Au-