The Mena weekly star. (Mena, Ark.) 1904-1977, 1911-05-25
Essay GOOD-BY
no CAMP SHAVER
u Tents in City Park Made a
..ad;se for the Old Soldiers
xyhjIe in Camp-All Had
Glorious Time.
me Arkansas Gazette.

Lars. fareWells anu 6oou WlSiie'
octerized the beginning of th'
u The monster Confederate en-
s.nment at Camp Shaver yester.
and last night, the old soldiers
IA divided between a feeling o
.spess at going home and one O.
Ibess at leaving the camp.
Breakfast this morning will bt
<.2 last meal served at the camp
s. hin be something OF fete, as
eommissary department intend:
s load the long tables with nearly
rything left over. In addition tC
<H every departing soldier will be
En- big lunch to carry home
NJ was done with all those leav-
Yesterday. The surprise and
zleht of the veterans at this UNI
& z4pecled courtesy were unbounded
is generally conceded that nc
IN ever provided the veterans
hin a camping ground so attrac-
b spacious and comfortable as
l|.a embodied in the vast city OF
lis erected in Little Rocks mag
aIticent city park. The complete
a5ss of the arrangements for the
somfort and pleasure of the veter-
IN and the smoothness with which
Ia arrangements were carried cut
Ms something to provoke both
@Dnder and admiration.
6 An average of nearly 5000 persons
Mere fed in the tremendous circus
BIZ top" which was designated as
|{he mess hall. At some of the
heals nearly 5000 were taken care
81, and then again the number Of
hose fed at each meal during the
past four or five days is figured by
chairman Joe Bateman Of the Com
Enissary department in the neigh
!borhood of 5000.
n Carloads OF Provisions.
Il To feed the vast multitudes every
nay Wholesale quantities of meats
and provisions were necessarily
Ased. According to Steward Pick
Rns 10000 loaves of bread, 5000
bounds of steak, 1000 pounds of
roast beef, ITO cases of eggs and
h 200 pounds of coffee formed the
basis of the menus for breakfast,
dinner and supper. These vast
quantities of foods were supple
mented with such lighter provis-
ions as $50 bushels of Irish pota-
toes, 1913 gallons of sugar corn, i25
gallons of string beans, 1873 gallons
of canned peaches, 1913 gallons of
canned apples, 1873 gallons of april
cots, 900 pounds of navy beans, 400
pounds of rice, 300 pounds of tapi-
oca and many kinds of fruit, in
90 boxes of oranges.
Eighty-five walters were en-
ployed in serving the old veterans.
There were q cooks with 10 assist
ants. Twenty dish washers kept ev-
erything clean and two experienced
men assisted Mr.. Bate
man and Mr.. Pickens in providing
the provisions in proper proper
tons for each big feast.
One of the great sights of the re-
union was to see the thousands of
veterans dining in the mess tent. In
sense of the word they were like
an army of boys at play. Their
youth and high spirits came back
to them and to say that they en-
loyed every minute of their stay at
Camp Shaver is but to express their
own assertions.
Glory for General Shaver.
Everyone comedies that the glory
Of the splendidly managed encamp-
ment belong to General Shaver, but
The general is so modest he declared
that the credit is due the regiment
Of men who assisted him in the sue
cess of the undertaking.
About the happiest and most ac-
eommodating assistant TO General.
Shaver was "Tobe" Thompson, the
generals negro body servant dur
ing the war, who came from Mis-
sissippi to be with his old master
turing the reunion.
As one of the veterans put 1t yes
Lerday, I'VE have been a burned
sight better off out here in this
park than many persons living III
The big hotels Of the city, because
we had good eating, plenty of fresh
air, big grounds to lounge in during
The day and nice, cool places to
sleep in at night"
The grounds were patroled night
and day by ten companies OF the
Arkansas National Guard. General
said yesterday by the way
Of compliment to them: "The boys
have worked hard, behaved like
true soldiers and brave men, and
am proud of them personally as
we'll as highly gratified with the ex-
cellent service they have given US
IN making everything just right at
si he CAM camp -
Considering all of these things, it
is small wonder that the veterans
are leaving Camp Shaver with deep
regret. Many of them will never
attend another reunion; il they 90
it is not likely they will ever again
be so pleasantly situated as they
were at Camp Shaver. Realizing
That, they know that the time they
spent there will Iinger in their
memory with fond reeollections UNI
Til death.
So they began to shake hands and