The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1914-06-05
TOUCHING TRIBUTE
TO WEARERS OF THE
GRAY BY MRS. BOND
BROUGHT TEARS TO THE EYES
OF AUDIENCE AT ROSE HILL
CEMETERY.
FLOWERS sTREWN ON GRAVES
Daughters Of the confederacy Hold
Annual Exercises Over Two Hun.
dred Followers Of the Lost Cause
Who Are Buried Here.

their simplicity were the exercises
Wednesday afternoon over the two
hundred or more Confederate graves
in Rose Hill cemetery. A more touch.
ling tribute could not have been rem
dered to the heroes of the Lost
Cause than that spoken with such
feeling by Mrs. Octavia Zollicoffer,
herself the daughter of General Felix
X. Zollicoffer, who gave his life in
behalf Of the Confederacy at the be-
ginning Of the war between the
states. 1t was short, but delivered
with such ring Of sincerity and feel.
ing that it brought tears not only to
the eyes Of the battle SCARED veter-
ans, who fought through those four
awful years, but to those of the young
er generation who had gathered in
large numbers to Fay their annual
tribute to the veterans who had
fought the good fight, given their
blood for what they believed to be a
righteous and just cause. and crossed
lover the great river in the struggle.
| With the tolling of the court house
bell at $3.50 o'clock, the long process
sion began to wend its way to the
cemetery, where large speakers
stand had been erected near the
grave of the immortal Carmack. Mai.
~. T. Williamson, presiding, introduc-
ed Rev. R. M. w. Black, who deliver
ed a fervent and eloquent prayer.
The audience joined N singing Bon
ME Blue Flag" after which John Nc
lGaw, Jr, recited John Trotwood
Moore's poem, Sam Davis" in a
touching way. After Mrs. Bonds ad-
dress, Miss Emma Claire Moore sang
very beautifully a solo The little
|children then scattered over every
grave armfuls of spring flowers. It
Twas silent though impressive trib-
ute by those Of the younger genera
ton to the heroes who wore the gray.
After awarding a cross of honor to
Mrs. Lucy Titcomb, DR.. Black pro-
nounced the benedict:on.
The address of Mrs. Bond was as
follows:
Dear Maury CHARTER and Winnie
Davis Chapter of United Daughters
lof the Confederacy, and brave Con-
lfederate veterans Of the Leonidas
Polk Bivouac: l am deeply sensible
of the compliment and the honor of
being asked to take part in these me-
mortal exercises, and / thank you.
But in the few days that this very
high privilege was offered me other
and more urgent duties have kept
me from giving the time needed for
preparation of such an address as
the culture of Columbia audience
demands.
Moreover, as / stand near these sa-
cred, patriotic graves. sad memories
clutch the chords of my throat and
choke back all spontaneous utterance.
deep emotion is sad hindrance to
intelligible speech. Indeed, am al
most stricken dumb in these solemn
surroundings. Remembrance of an
early personal woe falls like a stone
into the we'll of my heart and splash
es it's waters into my eyes"
Even if memory could take my
thoughts still further back in time
beyond the period of disaster to a
distant, happy past unknown to many
of you, still I could not command the
witchery Of words to hypnotic the
young into a delicious dream of the
beautiful world that existed in the
South before a seemingly cruel fate
tore down and brought tumbling
about our helpless heads the fairest
social structure known to history.
No more can conjure up to the
minds of the present generation a
realization of the incentives and the
sacrifices Of those who went out Of
that happy, bygone past into the hor-
rors of war to battle for their fami-
lies and their ideally delightful
homes. / used to wonder at the
strange Providence that permitted a
splendid people to be ruined. But on
studying more deeply / saw that the
God of moral evolution had need to
use the virtue locked up in the ex-
elusive South to better the standard
OF citizenship in the conglomerate,
foreign tainted, American nation.
If for fifty years we have failed to
understand the purpose of an All
Wise Providence in scattering us
abroad, If we are only now beginning
to perceive dimly the Divine inten-
ton that in our dispersion we should
keep the SAVIOR of our salt to preserve
the standards Of right living, If We
have been dull and slow to find out,
let us take heart. There is yet time
to fulfill our mission. It is not too
Lotto IN racaiva fha snfrif of a avatam