The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1920-07-23
CAME HERE TO
LOCATE CAMP OF
MASS. REGIMENT

Writing to his home paper, the
Holyoke Mass. } Telegram, Mr.. Ash
ton E. Hemph:ll, of that city, de-
scrlbes very interesting visit to
Lakeland recently. Mr.. Hemphill
says:
was glad to visit Lakeland for
several reasons. H. M. Senior and
family seem to think it near the cen,
ter OF the world. Mr.. Senior is deep
In all good things. Lakeland is an at
tractlve town, healthy and law add
ing. Its inhabitants are from all
parts of the country.
recalled that the Second Massa
ehusetts Regiment under Col. Embury
I. Clark was camped there in 1898. l
was serving my third and last term
in the Legislature in 1898, when the
Cuban war broke out. Roger Walcott
was Governor and John L. Bates was
speaker. We made a record for all
time in passing law or resolve in
about 20 minutes through all its stag.
es providing money to support our
country. | went to birmingham the
day the men signed the roll as u. s.
soldiers for the Cuban war. could
write a column on what / saw and
heard that forenoon. There had been
ice in early morning in camp. In a
few days the boys were at Lakeland
with the thermometer at IS to 80
however, / think no better place could
be found so near Cuba. There was lit
tie sickness there. In about 100 days
I saw the returned soldiers at Mon
tauk Point.
On arriving at Lakeland | inquired
as to where our Second Regiment was
camped but failed to locate the place
on my way to Sanibel. On my return,
| became obsessed with the desire to
find the camp location. | was direct
ed to the Office of Congressman Her.
bert j. Drane. Mr.. Drane kindly
went to the site of the camp near the
lake at corner of Massachusetts, ave-
rue and East Orange street. On the
way he stopped at the little Episcopal
Church and got a speech he delivered
about a year ago. In this speech,
about the history Of the church, he
gave very interesting account of the
only funeral OF soldier of the Sec.
ond regiment, which took place in
Lakeland. Westley S. Brass of West
field was the soldier and he became
sick before leaving Massachusetts, !.
Every seat was taken out OF the
church and then only about one-thfrd
could get in. Mr.. Drane could recall
only two people beside local people.
One was the chaplain and the other
the noted correspondent, Richard
Harding Davis.
have read Richard Harding Davis
account of that same funeral and it is
worth printing in full. ~
Congressman Drane spoke of his
warm friendship for both Speaker
Gillett and Congressman Treadway
The speaker had done him little ia
vor, which he appreciated.
spent an hour or more, after the
rising of the moon, at the camp site
and took some pictures in the morn
ing. Both houses and trees now cover
much of the camp area. | had seen
the regiment at birmingham and /
had seen it at Montauk. had visited
Santiago and the battlefields, far from
being mere skirmishes as many think
of San Juan Hill and Ell Caney and
ON that noght at Lakeland could
almost imagine | saw spook tents
among the trees. My mind went over
those I knew who were there from
this vicinity: Col. e. p Clark. Cros-
Ter, Phillips, Hunter, Foote, Macdon.
aid, Slate and Root. ! had, in some
cegree, weird feeling.
As one would expect, ! heard moth
ing but the highest praise of our men,
while at Lakeland, since my return, |
find that all of those in Co. d. whom
| have met, were equally pleased with
tbefr akplanI s0iOurn