The Columbus dispatch. (Columbus, Miss.) 19??-1922, 1920-03-10
First Decoration Day.

When the war closed IN 1865, the
Confederate States of America Tied,
surrounded by the graves of brave
soldiers who defended her, and took
her place among the dead nations Of
the earth. There was no great nat son-
al government to take charge ofsthe
ashes of her dead, and Mississippi
was too poor and broken in spirit to
erect memorials to perpetuate their
rames and commemorate their valor.
In this, the darkest hour in Confed-
crate history, the Southern women,
with love truer than truth and
stronger than death, continued to keep
the grass that covered their dead wet
with their tears.
In the spring of 1866, Miss Matt
Moreton, Mrs. j. t. Fontalne, and
Mrs. Green 7. Hill-three women of
Columbus whose names ought TO be
remembered as long as Southern
heart beats true to gratitude and hon
or and loyalty to woman, whose viz
tues shine amid the tears and whose
actions make this world glorious amid
the gloom of despair and thai ashes
of death-were in the habit of visiting
Friendship Cemetery and cleaning off
as best they could the weeds and
briers and decorating with flowers
the neglected graves of the Confeder-
ate dead. This beautiful custom, in
augurated by them, found hearty
response in the breasts of the ladies
of Columbus, and resulted in a deter
mination to make the decoration OF
the soldiers graves an annual occur
renee, and the FIRST CELEBRA-
TION TO TAKE PLACE was APRIL
%, 1866. An account of that event
is herewith copied from the Mississip-
pi Index, April 26, 1866, James A
Stevens, local editor: Is
''The procession of yesterday in
honor of the Confederate dead, was
large and imposing. First marched
in twos the young ladies and girls,
dressed in immaculate white, each
bearing her bouquet or chaplet OF
flowers. Next came the matrons
dressed in mourning; like the others
with flowers in their hands -their
black dresses typical Of the Southern
heart in gloom for its beloved dead
the fair flowers emblematic Of wo-
mans admiration and affection for all
that was gallant and chivalrous in
patriots. Lastly came the procession
of carriages bearing the elderly ladies'.
Arriving at the cemetery, the ladies
assembled around the graves of the
soldiers in the form of square
from the center of the ground, an
elaborate and eloquent address was
delivered by the Rev. G. 7. Stainback,
and, following it, fervent prayer
by the Rev. A. S. Andrews. The
ladies then performed the beautiful
and touching duty of decorating the
graves with flowers. There were over
1,400 graves to be decorated. Through
.exertions and appeals of the kind la
dies experimenting the good work,
all these graves had been neatly
cleaned off, so that after the dec
Grafton was completed, Goods Acre"
of heroes looked as if freshly bloom
ing with thousand flowers-bearing
up to heaven fragrant and beauti-
full evidence of woman's love, tender
ness and appreciation. ~
1--WE were glad to see that no dis
tinction was made between our own
dead and about forty federal soldiers,
who slept their last sleep by them.
1t proved the exalted, unselfish tone
of the female character. Confederate
and federal-once enemies, Rnow
friends-receiving this tribute of
respect"
Thus was established custom
which has become national in it's
adoption - Decoration Day-having