The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1912-09-23
|BLUEs BACK FROM
/ NEWEnGLAMO TRIP
Had Lavish Entertainment in
Several Northern
- Cities.
BOWLES PROUD OF COMMAND
Richmond Boys Given Ovation
s. in New York and New
Haven.
BoWLEs PROUD OF COMMAND

! Weary with a seven-day round OF
! sightseeing and entertainment, and
| aching for a good nights sleep. the
! Richmond Light Infantry Blues rolled
| into Main Street Station at 9:15 O'Clock
last night. fully three quarters Of an
| hour ahead of their schedule. For
| week New England had taxed the
Yankee ingenuity for which 1t is
| famed. to provide good cheer for their
southern visitors with a success which
has been duly chronicied. and which
was further corroborated by individual
/ accounts last nigt
Upsetting all railroad traditions, the
special train bearing the returning
soldiers clipped many minutes from It's
allotted running time. thereby upset
ting the plans of a number OF frienos
and comrades who had expected TO be
at the station for a welcoming hand
shake. The steamer which brought
the battalion from New York contri-
buted it's share by docking at New
port News last night at o'clock. a
half hour earlier than expected
March Up Main street.
The first intimat!on o. the return
was when the Blues Band, heading the
marching column, broke the sabbath
stiffness with a stirring homecoming
march. The unusual quiet OF the even
inc carried the airs far uptown. and
nv the time the procession reacheo
Grace and Ninth, crowds were gath
erea on the sidewalks to cheer their
return. The churches in the Viclni!y
poured their hundreds into the side
walks. augmenting the throng.
From Grace the marching column
turned into Seventh and along Una
street to the armory. Al Broad ana
Seventh the crowd numbered seFefai
hundred. and cheered enthusiastically
when the band played Dixie as
signal that home was in sight ana the
trip at an END
Report Royal Time.
81 can't begin to tell you what kind
of a time we had. or how royalty we
were entertained" said Major Edgar
w. Bowles. 1T would take book TO
tell it all. Everywhere we went-Pro-
whence. Hartford. New Haven. New
York-the people gave US the best
thew had. and entertained us day and
night. 1t was the greatest trip the
Blues have ever taken. and those who
id not go will never know what they
missed.
Our greatest surprise came in New
York. There, without previous notice.
the Old Guard took US in hand and
entertained US during our entire stay,
as il 1t had been part O. the program
We had expected to do our own en-
PERTAINING in the metropolis. and the
hospitality Of the Old Guard TOOK us
by surprise. / cannot say TOO much In
appreciation OF it.
And say this for me. too. will your
said Major Bowles. Every single one
Of the fellows behaved tip-top. and
that's what made this trip success
have brought them all back 1t and
hearty and nobody was ill a minute
during the whole trip.
Captured New Haven.
In New Haven, according TO most OF
the accounts. the oatteiion mace
real conquest The city was crowded
with visitors rallyins for great
homecoming celebration and the
tstraets assembled Richmond during
fair week On the occasion OF the
Blues parade, 10000 people lined the
route Of march and cheered them
selves hoarse. 1t was an ovation not
accorded to any of the other COM
mands in the procession
L believe If it were put TO vote"
said Captain Joseph A LeMasurier.
1.-The city of New Haven would have
voted that day that the Blues were the
greatest soldiers in the United states.
barring not even their own well-be-
loved Foot Guards. / never saw such
| demonstration"
The larger public entertainments
/ were supplemented by numerous pri-
! vate affairs at various clubs and at
| the homes Of friends. These. accord
ing to the men, were among the most
| ENJOYABLE features Of the trip.
A Few Were seassck.
| While the whole trip was remarkably
free from illness or accident. the old
! Atlantic played havoc with a few OF
1 the boys who succombed to the motion
Of the steamer. For the most part the
\ illness lasted only a few hours. leav-
| ing the victims with a haunted, pale
| look. which disappeared an hour after
they landed. As an 0fhcer pointed out
last night. they were after all only a
crowd of fandlubbers and not marines
| All bu, about fifteen Of the four COM
panies returned last night. These
, were permitted to drop OUT IN Ne"
York and other cities on the route TO
l con,1e,e their summer vacations.