Imperial Valley press., 1923-07-31

SAN DIEGO, july 31.-When the
year of "Taps' comes with the
last national encampmcnt of the
Grand Army of the Republic, the
gallant boys in the blue who
fought 62 years ago to prevent
the dissolution of the Union, may
be held in San Diego. When the
last earthly assembly of the vete-
rams of 81 is sounded, before the
great muster in the hereafter, it is
possible that delegates from Hcint-
zelman Post No. 33 and Datus f.
Coon Post No. 172 of San Diego,
will be the only ones to answer
here to their names.
Each years, throughout the Unit
ed States, sees the ranks of the
old veterans grown thinner; each
annual encampment finds "a lesser
number to- answer "hcrc.' Posts
from the "Mason and Dixon line
to Washington state are giving up
their charters because they have
not enough members left to carry
on the work, but in San Diego the
membership is gradually increasing.
Where hundreds of posts of the
men who "carried on' in the dark
days of the Republic, are desper-
ately holding on to their charters,
with barely enough members to
constitute a quorum, and death
claiming increasingly larger mum
bers of the men who answered
Lincoln S call, each - months the
posts in San Diego are actually
gaining in membership. The in
crease is slow, but to date has been
sure. For this reason, according to
Captain S. w. Bell of Heintzel-
man post, San Diego may have the
melancholy but historic distinction
of being the last city in the United
States to have a Grand Army post
Year by year more and more of
the old timers who have found the
rigors of eastern and northern Win
tcrs too much for their timing
blood, have driftcd into this land
of warm sunshine. Each year as
death depletes the membership of
other posts throughout the United
States, they are still farther dep
lcted by the members who come to
San Diego to end their days where
their wanning >Nitality will not
have to struggle quite so hard
against the elements, the old war
rior strategy and life recourse of
instinctively seeking the best po,
sition for last stand.
The San Diego posts have lost
here and there through the seasons
as an overborne comrade drops,
but newcomers from other parts of
the land, recruits once more in !,
final fight, want the companionship
of comrades of the Marching
Through Georgia" days, and so join
the local posts.
Heintzelman post has member
ship of 213 whose average age is
70 years, well beyond the allotted
"three score and ten.' Annual
ly about 10 per cent of these mem
bers are borne to the last bivouac
by their remaining comrades. Each
year an equal or slightly increased
number comes from the far corners
of the land to take their places.
In 1922 there were % deaths in
the post membership and exactly
the same number of veterans join
ed. In the first six months of 1928
taps sounded for the last time for
II of the old boys and III the same
period 1S fell i'll to fill the files,
making an increase of one for the
1Smonth period.
Heintzelman Post was organized
43 years ago and named after Gen
eral Heintzelman. Not one of its
2l3 members, however, is Ia native
Californian.
SO it may be, as Captain Bell
says, and he is so, that when the
last encampment of the men who
served with Grant, Sherman, Sher-
idan, Kearny and the rest is to be
held, there will be no opposition to
San Diego us the place of meeting