The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1911-04-12
Capt. James Ham Post
1873 Celebrates Close OF
The Civil War
SUMPTUOUS BANQUET; EXCEL
LENT SPEECHES, INTEREST
ING "REMINISCENCES BY
THE VETERANS.

]
guests celebrated the forty-fifth an
niversary of the surrender of Lees
army at Appomatox c. H., April g.,
1865, with a camp fire" at Mich
aels restaurant. The Maple City
Fife and Drum Corps enlivened the
proceedings with patriotic airs.
After the inner man had been
abundantly satisfied by d sumptuous
banquet, Toastmaster Judge Henry
Wilson, in a few well-chosen words,
introduced the orator of the even
ing, Homer Greene, Esq, who de-
livered a stirring address, outlining
the historical situation and reciting
the events that led up to the war of
'61-'65. His speech, which is given
in full below, was punCtuated
throughout with liberal outbursts of
applause and was enthusiastically re-
ceived by the banqueters. He said
by way of Introduction, I've been
speaking in public for the past thir-
ty-five years, and I've never before
read a speech. ! couldn't however
make a haphazard address of the
sort Judge Wilson asked me to
make"
Judge Henry Wilson, whose witty
and appropriate remarks, kept the
crowd in good humor all night, then
singled out Michael J. Hanlan, who
confessed that he had attended
nearly all the camp fires during the
past fifteen years, and said that he
considered that "the greatest and
grandest organization in the U. S.
was the G. A. r. The fact that he
had, according to his own statement,
1f ha Jo, hn
ever had in the court house." did
rousing speech.
B. H. Witherbee, managing edi
tor of The Citizen, responded to
call for a few remarks, and express
ed his pleasure at being present. He
concluded by saying, 81 will always
try to make The Citizen the paper
of the G.. A. R."
DR.. r. w. Brady read an interest
ing article from New York paper
describing the dramatic events pre-
ceding the outbreak of the Civil
war.
Comrades William E. Justin, H.
Parrish, Graham Watts We'd with
each other in the relation of blood
curdling war episodes.
The banquet hall was festooned
with red, white and blue bunting,
and tiny flags were the individual
favors.
Those present were: Commander
Judge Henry Wilson; senior vice
commander, j. e. Cook; quarter
master, Graham Watts; chaplain,
P. R. Colium; surgeon, R. w. Brady,
NJ. D.; officer of the guard, Michael
Weber; bugler, John Fischer; Henry
Parrish, L. A. Lybolt, Warner Les
ter, Jacob F. Katz, w. e. Justin, P.
H. Refining, Louis Schultz, Daniel
Kimble, Homer Green, Esq, C. A.
CARAT, Esq, c. P. Searle, Esq, NJ.
j. Hanlan, P. H. Rining, Jr., j. May,
Raymond Short, c. R. Huck, Clar-
ence Mundy, Arthur La Valley, Har-
old j. Bishop, G. w. Short, Edw. f.
Short, Horace M. Williams, Olaf
Highouse, Joseph P. Chambers, F.
w. Lesch, Edward w. Welsh, John
G. Carmichael, B. H. Witherbee, j.
M. Smeltzer.
Judge Wilson's Speech.
Half century ago to-day-on
April ~, 1.-The bombardment
of Fort Sumter opened the war of
secession. This was the bloody cli-
max of the irrepressible conflict be-
tween freedom and slavery which
had agitated our country for a gen.
Grafton.
The election of Abraham Lincoln
as President, in November, 1860, on
platform opposing the extension
of human slavery into our Territor-
les north of the parallel of thirty
six degrees thirty minutes, and by
an electoral vote representing only
the Free States, had been followed,
during the succeeding winter, by
the secession or practical withdrawal
from the Union of seven Slave
States-viz: South Carolina, Geor-
gia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi,
Louisiana and Texas, and the organ
ization by these States of an inde-
pendent government under the name
of THE Confederate States of
America"
These States, after adopting "Or-
dinances of Secession" had seized
on all the forts, arsenals, arms and
munitions of war, custom houses and
other public buildings, mints, mon
eys and precious metals, navy yards,
CONTINUED on Page Four.)