New-York tribune., 1919-05-07
City With Open
Arms Welcomes
Its Own 18th
Continued from page 1

Continued from page
crowd into line, watchful lest the
crush of the 9th Divisions return be
repeated. Only the chosen few were
allowed to reach the avenue, and the
blue coat barrier at Madison Avenue
stood firm.
voice of bugles. Their echoes carried
down the wind, and far along the
avenue eager eyes caught the CLEAN
of white banners, vVving above line
Of brown.
Cheering welled up from the waiting
crowd as the little column approached,
and then was hushed abruptly. In
place of waving hats and flags, were
bowed heads, and once or twice in The
Stiffness, broken only by the song of
and women caught their D-eath
harshly.
Stars for the Dead
Trail Statue Of Liberty
Two horses drew the gun carriage
on which statue of Liberty, the
divisional insignium, raised her torch
skyward. Daffodls, blossoms of
spring, lay about her feet, as golden
as the 1856 stars that shane in the
ten white banners that f1oated along
behind her.
The bugles had ceased their call
now. The cortege drifted slowly past
the reviewing standb each football
marked by muffled drum beats Of the
band that followed. The band broke
into march air. 1t sounded like
song of triumph. This, too, faded
away in the distance, and the police
band in front of the reviewing stand
played "Till We Meet Again"
The men who had "gone West" had
led their division home
Police guidons of red and white
were af1ame against the line of blue
that now moved up the avenue
from curb to curb. Behind it one
caught glimpses of olive drab and the
glitter of steel. Cheer leaders, one
to each block, ran out in front of the
stands.
The pulsating roar of organized
shouting swelled up as the division
forged into view, block after block Of
men in close marching order, battalion
after battalion.
At their head rode General Alex
ander, who had led them forward
through thirty-seven miles of what
had been considered impregnable de-
fences to victory. He sat his brown
charger, one hand on his bride, the
other clutching sheaf of American
beauties held across his saddle bow
Now and again his free arm snapped
UP to the salute. His keen soldiers
face beneath the jauntily cooked over
seas cap. was glowing with boyish
delight.
Behind him his men tramped along,
regiment after regiment, moving swift
ly and surely, and as always fulfilling
his predictions for them. General
Alexander had said that the parade
would take an hour and q half to
march from Washington Square to
10th Street and would pass any fixed
point in three quarters of an hour.
The horses of his staff clattered into
the 10th Street circle one hour and
thirty minutes after they had left the
square. His division passed the re-
viewing stand in a little under forty
five minutes.
They marched with long, driving
stride, bayonets rising and falling and
steel helmets slung from their right
shoulders bobbing to the swing of
their pace. Overseas caps were set
at rankish angles, tanned, lean faces
were agleam with smiles. In solid
rectangles Of a battalion each they
drove past, hard, lean, openly happy.
The cheering had got away from the
leaders now. Instead Of the regular
beat Of the earlier shouting 1t had
scaled upward into shrill yells Of ex-
citement and welcome. Men and
women Of usually grave demeanor tore
newspapers into bits and showered
their neighbors with impromptu con-
fetti.
Double Rank of Wounded
Follows 3O7th Repiment