The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1914-08-11
UNION SOLDIER WRITES OF HIS
EXPERIENCES IN NORTH CAROL INA
!. ourth Of July Grafton of Hon. Francis D. Winston is
Occasion OF Most Interesting Letter From Auburn,
New York-Tells of Gettysburg.

made a powerful defense of the ad-
ministration and showed up in fine
style the efforts that the profess
sional mourners" among Republican
politicians were making, just at that
time, to convince the people tina
business was going to smash as a re-
suit of the Democratic party being in
the saddle at Washington. The de-
livery of that address and the sending
of some copies of the Siler City Grit
containing it to a gentleman in Au-
burn, N. Y, resulted in the receipt |
by Governor Winston of a most in ]
teresting letter from Mr.. Robert -.
Drummond, Of Auburn, N. Y. Mr..
Drummond writes that his first public
speech was made in North Carolina
and that his last public speech was |
also made in this State. His letter
to District Attorney Winston fol- |
lows:
Through the courtesy Of my friend
and comrade, Major H. A. London, 1
nave had the pleasure of pursuing the
two issues of 1.-The Siler City Grit
which contained your speech at Siler
city on the fourth of July, nearly in
full. AS a lawyer, one who has made
lots Of speeches, and heard more of
them, / am greatly pleased with both
you and your address on the occasion
of the celebration of the fourth Of
July at Siler City. The information
contained in the speech is very in
teresting to me as one who is proud
Of his whole country, a lawyer and
a public man, your stOries-all new
to me, your stories being entirely
different from ours up this way-are
simply immense and must have
pleased YOU audience greatly.
1 assume that like myself, you are
A Woodrow Wilson man. and surely
you preached the doctrine of Peace
and Good Will and the cultivation Of
the proper psychological State" in
fine shape to the people of Siler City
and the surrounding country.
First Speech Was in This State.
1t may interest o as a lawyer and
public speech was made in your
State, and as a boy prisoner in the
Civil War IN the Stockade at Sails
bury, and waS addressed to Major
Gen. Bradley T. Johnson, who as
Commander Of all the Military Pris-
ons of the South, was on his first visit
of inspection to the stockade at Sails
bury, which at hat time contained
$4,000 ragged. hungry, detected boys
and men, and my address was In be-
half of these comrades, I standing
with our ration Of the day, four
ounces Of coarse corn bread, in my
hand as a text, and he listening to
me with the same courtesy INA lie
might hav extended to q Conklin or
sn Everett.
1t may still more interest you that
my last public speech was made in the
city Of Salisbury On April %, 1914,
In the National Cemetery at that city
while in company with the New YORK
Monument Commission when I was on
my way to the dedication of the New
York monument to our sons in the
National Cemetery at Andersonville
Ga.
Salisbury Receives Him Warmly.
The people of Salisbury turned out
IN great numbers and gave US a yer,
cordial reception. Through the
courtesy Of the chairman of the COL.
mission, i Was given the honor of tht
closing speech on that very import
ant and interesting occasion, and a.
q lawyer and a man, you can i'm
aGlne, but not understand, my feel
inSs and emotions as 1 stood there OF
the speakers stand looking out owe
those $4,000 unknown n unmarked
graves. nearly every one Of the oc
cupants of which, 1 had seen carrie'
out with my>own eyes, and very man,
oil them, had helped to carry to tn
dead house with my own hands. I
make the scene all the more inter
estlnS, the whole fine audience seem
eu 10 be entirely in sympathy wit
me boy prisoner of SO years befor
who had, under protest and at tn
point of the bayonet, entered tn
gates of their city as a prisoner Q
war.
\ Memorable Occasion.
III VIII perhaps interest you to kno
mat L listened to one public speec
oy one Of you North CarOlinians, tn
rev. DR.. Adolphus w. Mangum, the
a young Methodist clergyma1
stationed at Salisbury and 1 recalle
the fact that on a raw February da
III DO, L leaned against one of the GA
Irees In the stockade and listened t
nlin speak to that strange, out eve
10 De remembered audience of 1900
men and boys, hungry, sad, dejecte'
miserable, most of them knowing thu
within another month, unless release
my would all be buried upon tn;
same hillside.
Ii was n Af ~