Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1917-10-29
COLORED DRAFTEES
ARE OFF FOR MEADE
Contingent OF lO2 Given A Big
Sendoff This Morning.
PARADE WAS A BIG ONE.
Naval Band, St. Johns Cadets. Colored
Bluejackets, Boy Scouts And
Others In Line.

/ others In Line.
Given a send-off that quite equalled
if not surpassed that which was ac-
| corded the two contingents of white
men drafted into the new National
| Army, and who are now undergoing
system of intensive military training
at the army cantonment at Camp
Meade, this county. one hundred and
two young colored men, of ages
ranging between q and 81 years,
many of them residents of Annapolis
and the others scattered throughout
the various sections of the county,
| left this morning at 1120 o'clock on a
special car over the Washington, Bal
/ timore and Annapolis Electric Rail-
ways for Camp Meade, there to go in
| TO training with their white brethren
| The colored folks of the city and
| county made the most of the occasion
and there were considerably more
persons in the line of march than in
the parades that attended the depart
ure of the white draftees The serv-
ices of the Naval Academy band were
| secured for the occasion, the battalion
| of Cadets of st. Johns College were
paraded. and there was a detachment
of colored sailors from the Reina
Mercedes. the official station ship at
the Naval Academy. And besides
there were Mayor Strange and mem
| bers of the City Council, members of
| the Mems Council for National De-
| fense, and other officials of the city
and county in line, together with the
| four surviving members of Sheridan
Post of the Grand Army of the Re-
public, a colored organization of the
city The ministers of the three coll
ored churches Of the city also march
| ed, and there were also a number of
women members of the congrega-
tions of the churches, and friends of
the draftees who hailfrom the county.
| Headed by the Naval Acadmey band,
the parade moved through the princi-
pal streets of the city, the same as
marked the departure of the white
| draftees. Playing over There a
catchy marching piece, the compost
ton of a well known comedian of the
| stage, and which has a dandy swing
| to it, the parade moved around the
north side of State Circle, into Mary
land avenue, then through the lower
section of the town, up Main street,
around Church Circle, thence into
West street, and to the West street
terminal of the Electric Line The
women in the line of march carried
| baskets laden with comfy" kits and
| sandwiches These we're distributed
among the drafted men just before
| they entrained for the trip to Meade.
| The members Of the local Exemption
Board. consisting of Sheriff John r.
Sullivan, States Attorney Nicholas II.
Green and DIR. Walton H. Hopkins, as
usual had charge of the arrangements
| for the departure of the drafted men.
They marched in the parade, and at
| the railway terminus the roll of the
| draftees was called and they saw to
it that all hands were safely on the
train as it pulled away from the sta
| ton
Residents of the city. and particu-
larly the colored folks, turned out Ell
masse TO see the colored citizen-sol-
diers off, and enthusiasm ran rampant
all along the line. A particularly in
teresting feature in connection with
/ the parade was the presence of the
G. A. r. vets in line, headed by Mar
cellus Colbert, probably one of the
| oldest colored citizens hereabouts.
Away, away. we're coming over
| there" the eolored men sang as they
marched through the city, and they
| sang it with a vim Half dozen of
them carried a large national flag. and
all hands bore aloft small national
| flags, presented by the Board of Coun-
| ty Commissioners. the same as before
The colored boy scouts of the city
also took conspicuous part in the
parade, and helped to preserve order
about the station. AS was expected,
many tears were shed by the mothers,
| sisters and friends of the draftees.
both during the parade and at the rail-
way station.
The men who left today for Camp
Meade we're as follows:
Here is the list:
william Washington, Annapolis
Robert Carter, Marley.
James Edwards, Pasadena
Edward II. Smith. Annapolis.
Victor j. Thompson, Annapolis
Riley Jackson, Fairfield
Alexander Offer, Churchton
j. Harry Ray. Harwood
| Wesley Turner, Marley.
Norman Spriggs, Dayidsonville
George Hemingway, Fairfield
Alexander Turner, Annapolis
John Ayers, Annapolis.
| Henry Spruul. Fairfield.
Stephen T. Spriggs, Annapolis.
Ernest Kicks, Chesterfield
Roger Parker, Eastport.
Arthur Fisher, Parole
Israel A. Gather, Laurel
George Butler, Gambrills
John T. Davis, Eastport.
Sellman Stewart. Churchton
Herbert TilIman, Annapolis.