Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1916-09-07
MONUMENT
TO Be UNVEILED IN MAY

Dedication OF virginia's Tribute to
Lee Will BE Feature OF Wash
ington Reunion.
MANY VETERANS TO ATTEND
Governor Stuart Will Extend Invita-
{ ton To President OF United States
( and to Governors Of Many States
to Take Part in Exercises.
I sculptor Sieverss magnificent cqucs-
TRAN statue OF Robert T.. Lee will be
unveiled at gettysburg in May. 1917
and the ceremonies incident TO the un-
yelling Will he the outstanding fea-
iure Of the Reunion of the United Con-
federate Veterans. which will he held
next year in Washington. The national
capital is only scventy-fve miles from
the famous battle field. and il is prob
able that "a whole day will be set aside
( IN the reunion program for the cere-
mony, special trains carrying the vet
/ Grams and visitors TO Gettysburg
/ Announcement Of this plan for the
uuveiling Of the Lee Monument was
made las, nigh, by Governor Stuart in
behalf of the committee in charge Of
/ the pla cling Of the memorial on the
1 Gettysburg battle fcld. The plan ha
/ the approval OF the Gettysburg Park
/ Commission. which has selected as the
site the spot from which General Lee
( watched Pickctts famous charge
The decision 10 hold the unveiline
/ In May 1917. sets at rest various un-
official announcements setting the date
+ for next month or later this year The
/ committee. said the Governor. had never
! fixed q date. and all previous selections
were in the last degree tentative.
TO HAVE
UNWILLING IN OCTOBER
ut was found altogether impractical =
/ bic TO unveil the monument next month.
/ nS had been suggested" said the Gov
/ crnor. Not only would II he impossi-
bic to get together in October the SOL
| dicrS We should wan, TO have represent
! Virginia OH this great occasion, but The
ceremony would take place AT the
! height Of "a national political campaign.
with all the unsettled conditions Incl
dent TO such time.
Next May. however. Confederate
veterans from all over the country will
meet at Washington a few miles away,
; and the unveiling OF memorial 10 the
! Souths great leader at that time VIII
he most appropriate. by that time We
hope Ia be able to bring a large body
OF Virginia troops to the unveiling cerc-
mony. and perhaps the President OF the
United states himself viii find il posi- .
! Bile TO grace the occasion. Such a thing.
Of course. would be almost out OF the
question were the unveiling TO take
place towards the end of the cam
paign."
While no official announcement OF the
decision of the committee TO set the
unvcilinc date for the reunion period
next year has yet been made, Cover
nor stuart said that II would be forth
coming shortly. Invitations. he said.
Will be extended to the President of the
United states and TO many Governors
and their STATS 10 be presen, as guests
of the monument committee. Cnof-
icially. the Governor has already in
vited Governor and Mrs. Harrington,
of Maryland. TO whom he communicated
the plan about month ago. when he
met them at Crisfeld. Md
OCCASION OF DEEP INTEREST
TO SrRNIVORS Of cONFEDERACY
AS a Confederate occasion, the un-
yelling of the monument Of General Lee
Will take first rank. The reunion at
Washington will add to the event by
bringing to the ceremony thousands of
representative Confederates from all
over the South. The occasion will re-
call TO many OF them the annual re-
union of 1890 in Richmond, at which
time there Was unveiled in this
city Mercer's noble statue Of Lee
that stands AT Monument and Allen
Avenues.
Funds for the raising of n monument
Ito Lee on the Gettysburg field were
provided by the General Assembly II
was at first intended to unveil the me-
| iuorial at the semicentennial that was
celebrated by the Blue and the GRAY
at Gettysburg in 1915 The sculptor
+. William Sievers, OF South Richmond
encountered difficulties In producing a
statue that answered his own concep-
tion OF what an equestrian figure OF
Lee should be- and it was not until long
after the semicentennal that the fin
ished figure was forwarded to the Tiff
fany studios on Long Island to be cast
into bronze. The base has been fin
ished and in place for some time. but
the figure Of the mounted Lee has not
yet come from the molding plant.
The delivery of the unfinished nor.
ton OF the monument. however. Is
promised in the next few weeks, and
the completed memorial will he In place
long before the unvciling date, some
time next May.
Besides Governor Stuart. who is an
cx ohicio member, the committee
charged with the placing Of the monu-
ment is composed OF Colonel w. Cor
don McCabe, Richmond: RI. a. Edmond
sou, Houston: stephen J.. Read. palmers
Spring, and Colonel Thomas Smith
Warrenton.