Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1919-09-29
Grateful City Honors
Its Heroes Out of War

Fully 10000 enthusiastic. cheering
Harrisburg people thronged Island
Park yesterday afternoon to attend
the Welcome Home" services held
in honor of Harrisburg men and wo-
men who served with the colors dur
ing the great war. 1t was the big
gest gathering in the history of the
city and by far the happiest AMI
most enthusiastic.
The exercises, which were held on
big stand in mid-field in front of
the grandstand, were preceded by a
parade in which all the service men
and women joined. The procession
fC med on Market street in the court
of honor and more than 5000 soldiers,
sailors and marines were in line when
the parade moved off to the stirring
strains of bands, and led by the COM
mittee of arrangements. made up of
Civil and Spanish War veterans and
war workers. acting as an escore.
Out across the Market street
bridge. between two solid lines of
men, women and children the march
ers wended their way, and then down
into the athletic field at the upper
end of the island, where thousands
upon thousands of home-folks throng
: ing the bleachers, the grandstand and
every available foot of space not re-
served for the troops. burst into
round after round of applause that
kept up until the last soldier had
taken his place in front of the stand
and the exercises were opened with
prayer by Rabbi Haas. All through
the program, with the community
] singing led by Mrs. Ley, the address
| of the day by Governor Sproul, the
speech of welcome by Mayor Kiester
and the mem orial address by the Rev.
Henry w. A. Hanson, the great crowd
| hung on every word and cheered
| itself hoarse when the four medal of
! honor men presented with their cita-
| tions and crosses by Colonel James
| 3 Kemper and Major Frank C. Ma
hin. All in all. 1t was a day long to
b. remembered by those who wit
messed the exer cises; 4 red letter day
I in the history of Harrisburg. 1t saw
the curtain of war fall on the final
act in this city, and rise again to-day
| on stage set for a long period of
well-earned peace.
The day was ideal for the event.
The air was as balmy as in Au-
Gust and the skies cloudless. The
center of the city was astir with
great crowds of people hours before
the time set for the movement of
the parade, $50 o'clock. Promptly
at that hour the soldiers, sailors
marines and war service men and
women began to assemble in the
! beautiful Court of Honor in Market
street and Market Square. The old
Eighth Regiment Band, in the serv-
ice as the SiXtieth Pioneer Infantry
Band, led off the procession and di-
rectly following came the commit
tee of 125 in charge of the arrange
ments, acting as an escort.
AS the procession entered the
Market street bridge, between the
columns of the formal entrance, IL
was met by two lines of Red Cross
women in uniform on either side oi
the roadway. The soldiers saluted
as they swung through the double
lire four abreast and the big bridge
trembled beneath the steady pound
pound. pound of hundreds of feet
beating in unison to the stirring
march of the hands.
Those who saw the Island Park
yesterday will never forget the pic.
ture The athletic field lies like 9
great amphitheater With trees sur.
rounding it on three sides and g
fringe of lower shrubbery at the
south, it is completely cut off from
the outside world. The grass, a bril-.
liant green, had been trimmed dowr
to the level of golf course; the
stand in the center, fronting the
bleachers and the grandstand, wal
bedecked with the national color:
and from a tall steel flagpole at tht