The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1919-04-09
Public Memorial to Soldiers
Tomorrow Evening.
More Than 800 VIII Be Given
Medals of Honor.
CANADIAN TO Be SPEAKER
Survivor of Vilny Ridge on
Auditor IN Program.
Senators Capper and Curtis and
+. L. Travis To Talk.

Circumstances over which local au-
thorities have no control prevent the
parading of the returning soldiers of
Shawnee county. But circumstances
do not prevent the citizens of Topeka
and of Shawnee county from showing
their public appreciation of the sacri-
fees of the boys coming back from the
army and the navy by attendance at
the big reception for the service men
at the auditorium tomorrow evening.
The reception begins promptly at
1880 o'clock and it is expected that
more than 800 returned soldiers and
sailors will be present at the meeting,
each one of them clad in his uniform,
to receive the plauditS of the citizens
of the city and of the county and to
have pinned to his breast bronze
memorial medal presented by the very
persons in the seats, and the hundreds
of others who will not be at this first
meeting.
The medals to be given out at the
meeting tomorrow night are the joint
gift of Topeka and Shawnee county
paid for from the public funds and
from the purse of the Chamber of
Commerce. The medals are not
decoration. They are just a memorial
badge, a definite something which the
simplicity expresses the depth of graft
tude which the people feel for the men
who went to the defense of the liberty
of the world.
| 1t Is Public Meeting.
The meeting tomorrow night is
public affair, and is the first one of
series of such receptions. All of
these meetings are in charge of
Shawnee county awarding commits
sion whose personnel includes the
county commissioners, three of the city
commissioners, and r. r. Baer, w. A.
Biby and Robert Fullerton.
Special martial music will be fur
nished thruout the evening by the
| band of the Ninth battalion of the
Kansas state guard. The hall Will be
| in charge of the members of Company
H of the new Kansas national guard
and the entire Ninth battalion of the
guard will be present A special
feature of the receptions decoration
meeting will be the revival of the war
| time community sings, events which
\ were in a large measure responsible
| for the Topeka and Shawnee county
oversubscriptions to the various war
| drives, and which are expected to be
a great help in the floating of the
( Victory loan here next month. The
music for the community singing will
be furnished by the Liberty Sextette,
I led by B. p. Bartlett
|
J that the men who fell in the war.
i whether killed in action or dead of
! disease or accident in training area,
should be the first to receive the
| shawnee county memorials, even
though these memorials must of nee
essity be handed to surviving relatives.
Lieutenant Nash to Talk.
The principal talk at the meeting
tomorrow night is to be made by Lieu
tenant Nash, of the Canadian expedi-
tionary force. He is one of the sur
vivors of Vimy Ridge. is one OF
Byng's veteran campaigners. Nash
saw thirty-one months service on the
front. Other speakers will be Senators
Capper and Curtis, and Lieut. Col
Frank L. Travis. of the 117th ammu-
milton train of the famous Forty
second or Rainbow division.
| For the benefit of the more than
300 men who are to receive their me-
MORALS tomorrow evening, the COM
mittee in charge of the meeting an
nounces that the men will not be
asked for speeches. Neither will they
be paraded in front of the audience
Instead the men will be decorated in
squads of twenty-five. 1t is felt that
this method will avoid any possible
embarrassment on the part of the men
who are more used to being but units
in moving mass of~men rather than
individuals standing singly before a
vas ST ondionco